Australian Senator Prepares Bill for Crypto Regulation – Inside Details
Australian Senator Andrew Bragg has prepared a bill aimed at better regulation of cryptocurrency and other virtual assets in the country.
The bill, titled Digital Assets (Market Regulation) Bill 2022, provides for a licensing system for digital asset exchanges and stablecoin issuers.
Mr Bragg said Australia needed to keep up with the global race for regulation of digital assets. He has released a draft bill which is open for consultation until 31 October 2022.
Andrew Bragg is a senator for New South Wales from the Liberal Party of Australia who has often advocated cryptocurrency and called for a clear regulatory framework.
Licenses for Digital Asset Exchanges
The Digital Assets (Market Regulation) Bill 2022 proposes to introduce licenses for digital asset exchanges, digital assets and stablecoin issuers. In addition, the bill requires information reporting from banks in case they facilitate e-Yuan in the country.
A digital asset exchange or digital asset custodian service must have a license issued by the Minister or a recognized currency license to operate in Australia.
In the case of stablecoins, the bill requires Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) issuers to obtain the necessary license to operate in the country. Called the Stablecoin Issue Requirements, the list of regulations will be mandatory for CBDC issuers to comply with.
The bill also requires certain designated banks to report information to the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the Reserve Bank of Australia in the event that they have facilitated the use or availability of e-Yuan in Australia in the past year.
It must be noted here that e-Yuan is the first CBDC issued by a major national economy. E-Yuan was introduced by People’s Bank of China, the central bank of China, in 2021. Only a few countries such as China, Bahamas and Nigeria have issued their CBDCs so far.
The bill requires active regulation of all activities related to e-Yuan.
Push for emission-friendly crypto hub
Bragg is seen as a major voice for cryptocurrency in the Australian political space. Last September he did so that Australia should strive to become a cryptocurrency hub, but in an emissions-friendly way.
He has repeatedly called for strong regulation in the crypto industry. In June 2022, he wrote a perception that Australia must regulate crypto or it will lose the race for capital, people and consumer protection. He has also warned that Australian consumers remain exposed until crypto exchanges are regulated.
Crypto regulations are prioritized
Currently the Labor Party is the ruling party in Australia which won the election in March this year. According to Bloomberg reportPrime Minister Anthony Albanese said applying comprehensive regulations to the domestic cryptocurrency sector would be among the three items for his cabinet.
The Australian Government announced in August, of which a review will begin cryptocurrency assets in the country to better regulate the industry. Token mapping would be a priority for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s government.
The Australian Taxation Office estimates that more than one million taxpayers have interacted with the crypto-asset ecosystem since 2018.
