Stricter regulations will be introduced to the burgeoning cryptocurrency market in an attempt to protect the estimated 1 million Australians dabbling in the sector.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced a series of measures on Friday, including strengthening the enforcement of crypto providers and beefing up consumer protection.
The regulation follows the spectacular last year FTX collapseone of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, which left thousands of Australian investors without money.
The federal government is tightening regulations on the booming cryptocurrency market.Credit:Bloomberg
Globally, market watchdogs are concerned that people entrust their digital assets to a trading platform and mistakenly think they have the same protections as when buying shares online.
Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones said the reform would protect crypto-curious Australians and mitigate risks to the economy.
"(This is about) protecting consumers, protecting our financial system and cracking down on criminals," he told ABC TV on Friday.
Charging
Under the changes, financial regulator ASIC will increase the size of its cryptocurrency team and work to educate consumers about financial risks, while the government will set standards for crypto asset providers.
With more than $221 million paid for scams through crypto assets in 2022, the announcement also outlined an increase in anti-scam efforts by the consumer watchdog and the National Anti-Scam Center that will facilitate data sharing on real-time to prevent and disrupt scams.
