Australian Government Takes New Crypto Regulatory Position
Australian Finance Minister Jim Chalmers thinks his government will improve the way crypto assets are managed and provide better consumer protection.
Three months after coming to power, the Australian Labor party has finally spoken out on how it will approach the crypto regulatory framework. Accordingly, Jim Chalmers included “token mapping” in 12 recommendations presented in the Senate investigation report last year entitled “Australia as a Technology and Finance Center”. . The report was warmly welcomed, with the entire industry anxiously waiting to see if the ALP government would accept crypto.
To be conducted before the end of the year, token mapping will determine how crypto assets and related services will be managed and future regulatory decisions.
The Treasury Department will also implement a number of other recommendations in the near future, including a licensing framework for non-financial crypto asset service providers, appropriate requirements to protect consumer crypto-asset custody and consider the corporate-style structure of a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO).
In a statement from Jim Chalmers along with many other officials said the Albanese-led government wants to rule the cryptocurrency sector “largely unregulated”:
“As it stands , the crypto sector is largely unregulated and we need to do some work to get the right balance to embrace these new and innovative technologies.” The announcement also notes that over a million taxpayers have interacted with the crypto ecosystem since 2018, but “regulation is struggling to keep up and adapt.”
Politicians also commented that the former Liberal-led government has been “awkward” towards crypto regulation through secondary service providers without understanding the nature of it. of what is being managed. The Albanese government is taking a more serious approach to figuring out what's in the ecosystem and what risks need to be considered first.
Speaking to Cointelegraph, Michael Bacina, partner of Piper Alderman, said the token mapping exercise is an important step in bridging the significant educational gap between regulators and decision makers. policy.
He said:
“Australia is overwhelming its weight in blockchain at the moment, but regulatory uncertainty has resulted in many businesses leaving Australia. A proper token mapping exercise will give regulators and policymakers a deeper understanding of the activities they are regulating.”
However, Dr. Aaron Lane, a senior lecturer at the RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub, believes that token mapping is a delaying tactic by the government:
“Progress is progress – but it's worth it.” disappointed that we are not further along the path of major industry regulation and consumer protection measures. Unfortunately, they needed to buy themselves some time with a token mapping exercise to catch up. Progress is progress, but let's be clear – this is not the first time token mapping has been done. Let's take the example from the UK in 2019.”
Back earlier this month, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) began exploring the use case and economic benefits of a national digital currency (CBDC). Australia's largest bank, Commonwealth Bank (CBA) has also started offering cryptocurrency services, despite the regulatory situation here is still not really open.
Crypto Fox News summary
Aug 22, 2022
