Millions more Australians will invest in cryptocurrencies if the Labor government passes new laws regulating digital assets, fresh survey data shows.
A draft bill released late last month aims to change existing laws to regulate crypto platforms in order to create more certainty for Australian consumers and the cryptocurrency industry, and the government says requiring platforms to be licensed will promote innovation and increase investment.
A subsequent YouGov survey found that four million Australians – 15% of the population – who do not currently own cryptocurrency say they are more likely to purchase if the industry is regulated, Sky News Australia reported.
This would increase the number of cryptocurrency investors from about one in five Australians to two in five.
Jason Titman, chief executive of Australian cryptocurrency exchange platform Swyftx, said that if passed the laws could turn the local market into a $130 billion sector, and would have two main impacts.
“Licencing rules will protect clients from poorly run crypto exchanges, and bring an influx of new investors and businesses to the market,” he said.
“The research is very consistent, Australian investors want the market regulated and they’ll start allocating to digital assets as soon as Canberra passes crypto laws.
“We expect legislation to have a big bang impact, with a lot of growth and innovation in the local market. We know some local banks will offer spot trading in crypto-assets when the market is regulated and we’ll certainly see more investing into products like bitcoin ETFs.”
Daniel Mulino, Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services, said after opening consultation on the draft bill that the final legislation would “introduce a new framework for digital asset businesses in Australia”.
“It is about legitimising the good actors and shutting out the bad, giving businesses certainty and giving consumers confidence,” he said.
Assistant Minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy Andrew Charlton said the new legislation could make Australia a “world leader in digital assets”, and described the industry as a vital part of the digital economy.
The EU already has cryptocurrency regulation laws in force, while the US passed legislation setting up a regulatory regime for stablecoins in July, and pro-cryptocurrency Senate Republicans are trying to pass another bill overhauling how they are regulated.
Header image credit: Alesia Kozik (Pexels).
