Australia Crypto Rules Gain Some Clarity Under New Guidance

Australia’s corporate regulator has issued updated guidance on digital assets, which blockchain executives have welcomed, while airing concerns about the rapid issuance of licenses.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission updated its Info Sheet 225 on Wednesday, announcing what companies offers crypto services classified as financial products must become a member of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority and submit an Australian Financial Services License by 30 June.

Bitcoin is not a financial product

John Bassilios, a crypto lawyer and partner at Hall & Wilcox, told Cointelegraph that under the new guidance, tokens like Bitcoin (BTC), non-fungible gaming tokens, and tokenized concert tickets are unlikely to be considered financial products.

“If you’re an exchange and you only deal in Bitcoin, then you don’t need to apply for a license based on that guidance,” he said.

However, stablecoins, wrapped tokens, tokenised securities and digital asset wallets are among what ASIC considers financial products in its updated guidance.

Bassilios said this could also include stablecoins with performancetokenised real estate, tokenised bonds and staking as a service, where there are restrictions such as a minimum staking balance or a lock-up period.

ASIC also said it has taken a decision in principle to grant regulatory relief to stablecoins and some packaged token distributors to smooth the transition to the proposed law reform.

The guidance provides clarity, but structural bottlenecks remain

Steve Vallas, the CEO of Blockchain consulting firm APAC, told Cointelegraph that the updated guidance sets a demanding standard that will require significant coordination across policy, law and industry to implement.

“ASIC has chosen to operate the policy before the reform of the law. That approach brings certainty in the short term, but also exposes how the interpretation is now the work of the legislation,” he said.

Vallas said that the real test will now be in the implementation with “structural collars”, likely to cause problems.

“They include limited recognized local expertise, banking access and insurance capacity. Without practical solutions, compliance risks will turn from a legal challenge to a logistical one,” he said.

Guide welcomed and much awaited

Amy-Rose Goodey, CEO of the advocacy group Australia’s Digital Economy Counciltold Cointelegraph that the industry had been waiting for clarity like this for a long time.

“It gives us an indication and visibility about the position of ASIC, how they deal with companies in the digital asset sector, which we were not fully through until this point,” he said.

However, Goody agreed there are still concerns about ASIC’s resources and ability to process large numbers of licenses in a timely manner to ensure businesses are in compliance.

Related: Biggest financial regret of young Australians: Ignoring Bitcoin at $400

The industry is currently in a “transition phase,” according to Goody, with companies restructuring and reviewing the licenses they are required to hold.

The Albanian government proposed a new crypto framework that regulates exchanges under the existing financial services laws in March, with the Treasury end a consultation on Friday on draft legislation that would extend financial sector laws to crypto service providers.

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