Australia was one of the countries that placed progressive outlook on Cryptocurrencies. Australia’s crypto regulatory framework came into existence in 2017, particularly specifying Bitcoin to be treated as property subjecting to capital tax gains. Previously, there was controversial double taxation under Australia’s goods and services tax (GST), which was quickly replaced by the progressive outlook.
Cyrpto Exchanges has been mandated by the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) to register and verify users, also complying with government AML/CFT reporting obligations. Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has issued regulations for initial coin offerings (ICOs) and cryptocurrency trading which resulted in many exchanges delisting anonymous coins/tokens.
Overall, Australia is continuing to introduce crypto regulations with the objective of providing a clear policy framework to crypto businesses. Government is also planning holistic regulations for cryptocurrency exchanges to operate and built vibrant crypto industry in Australia, in December 2021, a new licensing framework has been introduced specifically for cryptocurrency exchanges with consultation period scheduled for 2022. The proposed framework powers consumers to safely purchase and sell crypto assets in a regulated environment.