Australia’s corporate regulator has released updated guidance on digital assets, which has been welcomed by blockchain executives, while raising concerns over the rapid issuance of licenses.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission Updated Its info sheet 225 on Wednesday, announcement those companies offers crypto services Classified as financial products must be a member of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority and Lodge for an Australian financial services license on June 30.
Bitcoin is not a financial product
John Bassilios, a lawyer and Crypto partner at Hall & Wilcox, told Cointelegraph that under the new guidance, tokens like Bitcoin (BTC), playing invisible tokens, and Tokenized concert tickets are unlikely to be considered financial products.
“If you’re an exchange and you’re only dealing in Bitcoin, you don’t need to apply for a license based on that guide,” he said.
However, StableCoins, wrapped tokens, tokenised securities and digital asset wallets are among what ASIC considers to be financial products in its updated guidance.
Bassilios says it can also be included yield-bearing stablecoinstokenised real estate, tokenised bonds and staking as a service, where there are restrictions such as a minimum staking balance or lock-up period.
ASIC also said it made an in-principle decision to provide regulatory oversight for StableCoin 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 consulting firm Blockchain APAC, told Cointelegraph that the updated guidance sets a demanding standard that will take significant coordination across policy, legislation and industry to implement.
“ASIC has chosen to run the policy early in the law reform. That approach brings certainty in the short term but also exposes how much interpretation is now being given to the work of the law,” he said.
Vallas said the real test will now lie in implementation with “structural bottlenecks,” likely to cause issues.
“They include limited recognized local expertise, access to banking and insurance capacity. Without practical solutions, compliance risks shift from a legal challenge to a logistical one,” he said.
The guide is welcome and long awaited
Amy-Rose Goodey, the CEO of the Advocacy Group that Digital Economy Council of Australiatold Cointelegraph that the industry has been waiting for clarity like this for a long time.
“It gives us an indication and visibility into ASIC’s position, how they will treat businesses within the digital asset sector, which we haven’t had up to this point,” he said.
However, Goody agrees that there are still concerns about ASIC’s resourcing and its ability to process a large number of licenses in a timely manner to ensure business compliance.
Related: Australians’ biggest financial regret: ignoring Bitcoin at $400
The industry is currently in a “transition phase,” according to Goody, with businesses restructuring and reviewing the licenses they are required to hold.
The Albanian Government proposed a new crypto framework that regulates exchanges Under existing financial services laws as of March, the Treasury is included end of a consultation on Friday on draft legislation that would extend financial sector laws to crypto service providers.
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