Australia Prepares for New Crypto Regulation Overhaul: Report

Australia is gearing up for a sweeping overhaul of its digital asset regulatory framework.

According to a report from news.com.au, the country’s upcoming crypto regulation will be the biggest overhaul of Australia’s payment system since the early days of the internet.

Major components of the move from Australian regulators will include a taxation system for cryptocurrency, investor protections from “unscrupulous dealers,” and methods of regulating digital banks, crypto exchanges, and brokers.

“The government can’t guarantee your crypto any more than it can guarantee a painting or a share in a company, and nor should it,” Financial Services Minister Jane Hume said.

“But we can make sure Australian exchanges, custodians and brokers – Australian players in the crypto ecosystem – work within a regulatory framework that is better, safer, and more secure.”

The reforms will also include recommendations from Australian senator Andrew Bragg, whose parliamentary report on the sector found that the country’s regulations were currently insufficient.

Bragg stated early this month that the crypto industry in Australia had voiced its support for “heavily beefed up requirements for an Australian crypto market license.”

The senator says that the industry has a consensus that crypto exchanges should be subjected to “core standards for capital adequacy, risk management, auditing and responsible person tests”.

“The legal principles which apply to financial markets can, and will, apply to digital markets,” Bragg said.

According to news.com.au, the Australian government will release three key documents on Monday, including a paper seeking the industry’s views on the appropriate strategies for developing a licensing and custody regime for digital assets. The government will be consulting and working with the crypto industry as part of the rollout of the new overhaul.

The government is reportedly aiming to implement the new regime by the end of this year.