Australia has released draft legislation to regulate cryptocurrency exchanges, proposing to bring cryptocurrency platforms under the Australian Financial Services Licensing (AFSL) regime.
The bill is part of Australia’s broader digital assets strategy, which was unveiled in March and aims to provide effective parameters for digital assets and payment stablecoins.
Currently, digital asset exchanges in Australia are only required to register with the Australian Transaction Reporting and Analysis Center and comply with anti-money laundering and customer identification regulations.
Discussions about recognizing crypto as property in Australia made headlines in May, following Magistrate Michael O’Connell’s ruling that Bitcoin transactions should be treated like cash and exempt from capital gains tax.
The Australian Bill includes its draft law, explanatory memorandum, consultation questionnaire and information sheet. “The Bill amends the Corporations Act 2001 to encompass digital asset platforms and tokenized custody platforms by introducing them each as new financial products,” the federal government said.
Under the Bill, any entity providing specified services in relation to digital asset platforms or tokenized custody platforms will be considered a “financial services” provider and will therefore be required to hold an AFSL.
The bill also highlights that cryptocurrency platforms must follow rules like other financial service providers; non-compliance can result in fines ranging from AU$300 to several million dollars. Smaller exchanges, such as those with less than A$6.5 million in annual trading or less than A$3,300 in average customer deposits, are exempt from these fines.
The legislation will not extend to non-fungible tokens or tokens used in gaming ecosystems. It primarily targets trading platforms, leaving token issuers and companies using tokens for non-financial purposes unaffected by the new restrictions.
“(We) work to support innovation and make digital assets safer for consumers,” the government said. “Stakeholders support policy arguments for government regulation of digital asset platforms.”
Recently, Australia’s pension system has also attracted the attention of cryptocurrency companies.
In September, California-based blockchain company OKX rolled out a new Self-Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) platform in Australia, allowing members to directly manage and control their retirement investment.
Prior to this, local news reported that Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: COIN) had tapped into Australia’s SMSF market with its own platform, also “designed to integrate digital assets into retirement portfolios through streamlined services.”
With these developments and the growing cryptocurrency landscape in Australia, the government is now seeking feedback on how to implement changes in the sector.
Responses to the bill will be accepted until October 24, 2025.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle de la Cruz, hold no direct investment interest in any of the companies mentioned in this article.
