Australia Should Change Laws To Fit Crypto, Senate Report Says

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Representations of Bitcoin, Ethereum, DogeCoin, Ripple, Litecoin cryptocurrencies are placed on the PC motherboard in this illustration taken on June 29, 2021. REUTERS / Dado Ruvic / Illustration

SYDNEY, Oct.21 (Reuters) – Australia must introduce new regulations for digital asset miners, such as tax cuts and a licensing regime for crypto exchanges, to be “competitive with Singapore, the UK United and the United States, “according to a Senate report.

The report, released on Wednesday by the Senate Committee on Australia as a Technology and Financial Center, also calls for clarity on the rules regarding when banks can refuse to deal with a professional client involved in cryptocurrency.

Many of Australia’s leading financial institutions have not engaged in the cryptocurrency industry, despite its huge growth over the past year, due to its high risks.

Australia needs to set its rules to make room for entities with a “decentralized stand-alone business structure” and its tax rules so that people only pay taxes on trading in digital assets when they do. a “clearly definable added value”, adds the report.

“This means Australians can have more control over their financial destiny rather than depending on endless intermediation,” said committee chairman Andrew Bragg.

“The committee recommended a comprehensive crypto framework to ensure Australian leadership. We will be competitive with Singapore, the UK and the US,” he added.

Australia has struggled to keep pace with the growth of the digital asset economy, which spans crypto exchanges, blockchain-based security tokens, and non-fungible tokens, or “NFTs,” which offer the online property ownership.

The Australian Taxation Office noted a “dramatic increase in trading” since early 2020, when lockdowns from COVID-19 sparked a wave of online investment activity, the report says, sending prices for some crypto – currencies at record levels.

However, estimates of the size of the overall Australian digital asset market vary widely. A sixth of Australians owned a cryptocurrency in 2021 worth A $ 8 billion ($ 6 billion), with bitcoin being the most popular, according to researcher finder.com.au.

Digital market players welcomed the report but warned the rules need to change faster.

It contains “strong recommendations (but) how fast we are actually trying to implement regulatory change and how fast this technology is moving is poles apart,” said venture capitalist Mark Carnegie, who has interests in digital assets. .

Caroline Bowler, CEO of bitcoin exchange BTC Markets, said the report exceeded expectations by including “pragmatic recommendations …

($ 1 = 1.3293 Australian dollars)

Reporting by Byron Kaye; Editing by Himani Sarkar

Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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