On March 21st Published Plans to regulate digital assets and payment stablecoins, focusing on platforms that have custody of customer assets and Stablecoin issuers.
According to the Treasury, the “Fit for Purpose” digital asset regime will strive to increase transparency, protect consumers, help Australia Adopt and take advantage of new technology and keep the country competitive globally.
“Digital assets are a rapidly developing part of the economy and offer opportunities for new products and productivity gains. The potential benefits of these assets are far -reaching, from streamlining payment systems to converting how we invest and do business,” reads Treasury Paper.
It added that the government’s strategy would “help industry identify opportunities and manage risks, unlock innovation, protect consumers and maintain market integrity. By adapting to international best practice, Australia can increase global competitiveness for our digital asset sector.”
The Treasury said it would also work with Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) “To ensure that there are appropriate transitional arrangements for the Government’s legislative reforms that come into force.”
Australia’s plan
The paper broke Australian governmentA:
- A RAM for digital asset platforms (DAP), described as online platforms that have digital assets for consumers;
- A framework for payment stablecoins, which will be treated as a type of stored value facility (SVF)-Funds loaded on an account or a facility-under government government Payment license reforms;
- Conduct a review of the Asics Improved regulatory sandbox;
- And a suite with initiative to explore “ways to safely unlock the potential benefits of digital asset technology in the financial markets and the broader Australian economy.”
The focus will initially be on DAP operators. Specifically, those who provide common digital products with underlying custody arrangements, including trading platforms, custody products and certain brokerage arrangements.
Local or foreign companies that provide services such as operation and handling of DAPs and the issuance and redemption of tokenized SVFs will also be included.
Obligations
Companies covered by the DAP framework must comply with the general obligations imposed on all providers of financial services, such as “providing services honestly, fairly and efficiently”, and avoid conflicts of interest and meet the minimum capital requirements.
Companies classified as DAP operators must also follow rules to protect customer assets. These will be based on Existing rules for “client money” and Minimum standards for custody and depot services.
Furthermore, companies covered by the regime will have additional customized requirements for redemption of “stored value represented by Tokens“As well as rules for disclosure for digital assets without issuers and reserve composition.
Future development
In addition to describing the framework for DAPs, the Treasury provided a roadmap for their future regulatory plans for digital assets.
This included introducing a Crypto Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) to help Address tax evasion By providing an international standard for income authorities to exchange information about users’ digital asset tax transactions. Treasury said it considered feedback from stakeholders from one Last CARF consultation document From November 2024.
Treasury also announced that it was working on Australia’s reserve bank (RBA) – The country’s central bank – to explore “feasibility and potential benefits” with an Australian Dollar Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The couple released a joint report In September last year, their research summarizes on the potential CBDC.
According to last week’s Treasury magazine, “The report stated that although a clear case for general interest will not yet issue a retail CBDC, it may issue a wholesale CBDC playing an important role in improving the function markets in Australia.”
As for Tending Tokenization, Treasury said it worked with Asic, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), RBA and Digital Finance Cooperative Research Center (DFCRC) – an industrial group with a focus on digital asset research – to try the use of tokenized money (including CBDCs and StableCoins) for the decommissioning of transactions on wholesale -tokokenized asset markets.
The DAP framework and future roadmaps are all plans at a high level; As such, the Treasury provided no specific dates for their possible implementation.
See: Regulation leads to good uptick for web3 operators
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