The Australian government admits the possibility of Blockchain technology being applied in various areas of government. Non-government projects that deal with digital currencies and decentralized technologies are in an active stage of development.
Cryptocurrency is not recognized as a financial instrument on the territory of the country, so, crypto-transactions – buying, selling, saving and others – are not legalized. But this rule does not apply to cryptocurrency transactions that interact with fiat funds or other finances, for example, the exchange of cryptocurrency for fiat money.
The state has a Code of Conduct for players in the digital currency industry. The government is interested in ensuring that crypto companies adhere to the policy of cooperation with the state, but industry leaders do not have confidence in these obligations.
The Australian Investment Commission, ASIC, has asked regional firms working with blockchain and cryptocurrency to cooperate with regulators and help develop innovations in the country. In my opinion, in this situation, we can conclude that the Australian regulator is making attempts to strengthen trust relations in the cryptocurrency economy.
ASIC focused on the problem of the opacity of the current rules, marking the supervision in the field as excessively ephemeral, which prevents large companies from interacting with it. Thus, the parties involved in this area have difficulties in following the current regulatory environment. In my opinion, regulators need to cooperate to support modern technologies, and not try to dampen the development of the industry by excessive regulation.
The country’s government is supporting blockchain projects that focus on mining certification and excise taxes. The public of the country actively resists such decisions in the sphere of regulation of the financial sphere with additional rules.
Australian Banking institutions and financial companies are exploring the possibilities of working with the digital industry and the use of digital currency. In 2021, there are speculations that the country could become one of the first to launch CBDC, thanks to a fertile regulatory environment for the cryptocurrency industry.
I believe that Australia’s behavior in regulating the work of cryptocurrency companies and the cryptocurrency industry is generally similar to the actions in South Korea. On the one hand, the state wants to introduce blockchain technologies, stimulates the development of the digital economy, and on the other hand, it introduces strict rules to regulate this industry. I would like to note that the country’s population has a positive attitude to cryptocurrency. Based on research, it is known that in Australia, every 5th resident is the owner of digital assets. However, despite its loyalty to the cryptocurrency industry, the Australian government is engaged in strict regulation regarding the taxation of crypto trading. The position of the authorities in this matter is very clear – any profit received should be taxed. The country plans to introduce a procedure for tracking financial transactions in the offshore zone, and the authorities are also seeking to work closely with representatives of other countries in order to be able to cross-check data. If we look at the issue from this point of view, I come to the conclusion that Australia’s position is close to America’s.