Australia’s corporate regulator to build ‘results-based’ crypto policies

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) will focus on the desired regulatory outcomes as it closes in building and rolling out various regulatory reforms for the crypto sector.

ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland shared the body's game plan to boost the growth of responsible financial innovation on 20 March as part of Blockchain APAC Policy Week.

Kirkland pointed out the importance of solving the “regulatory trilemma” regarding financial innovations such as consumer protection, market integrity and financial innovation.

ASIC aims to develop trust in crypto and decentralized financial systems by improving regulation and balancing the trilemma conditions. According to the commissioner, ASIC has provided informal regulatory support to more than 900 entities since 2016.

Kirkland talks about the coming change:

“In short, our desired outcome is a clear set of rules that protect the integrity of markets and reduce risks to consumers and investors – supported by mechanisms that encourage compliance with these rules and enable us to enforce them more effectively.”

ASIC has received a number of proposals to promote financial products and other “real world” assets. “Some types of tokens will be governed by the current regulatory regime, while others will be governed by the government's Digital Asset Platform proposal,” Kirkland added.

Kirkland believes ASIC's innovative approach and effective regulation will help reduce associated risks and promote digital assets to the masses.

RELATED: Court finds Australian crypto firm's acquirer was compliant with acquisition product

In October 2023, the Treasury Department issued an advisory requiring crypto exchanges to apply for a financial services license from their local financial regulator.

The proposed new rules would require any crypto exchange holding more than 5 million Australian dollars ($3.2 million) or AU$1,500 ($946) to obtain a license from ASIC.

While the proposal has seen a mixed response from crypto exchanges operating in Australia, the Treasury explained that the overall point of the consultation paper was to “seek feedback” on a number of questions and regulations contained within it.

Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot' for hackers and governments: Trezor CEO