Australian Crypto Regulations Likely to Be Delayed Until Mid-2024: Report

Australian laws to regulate the crypto industry and protect retail customers could still be more than a year away, government documents released under Freedom of Information Laws indicate.

Although the government hasn't given a timeline for bringing in crypto legislation, last month it said it would release a consultation paper about the issue the middle of this year.

In a document dated last August, three months after Anthony Albanese defeated Scott Morrison's coalition to become Australia's prime minister, the Treasury revealed how some stakeholders might be disappointed with a "perceived delay in implementing a licensing regime" but viewed the concerns as "somewhat mitigated" by the collapse of several crypto companies and market crash earlier in the year.

The Australian Financial Review, which reported on the papers earlier, said the Treasury's timetable for consulting with industry and designing new legislation stretches well into next year.

"Final submissions to cabinet are not expected until towards the end of this year," AFR said, leading some industry observers to suggest that "legislation would probably not come until well into 2024 or 2025."

Also last August, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said Australian "regulation is struggling to keep pace and adapt with the crypto asset sector," and introduced token mapping as a potential way forward. "The Albanese government is taking a more serious approach to work out what is in the ecosystem and what risks need to be looked at first."

"While recognizing the need for action, Treasury sees the opportunity to take more time to better understand the emerging innovations and risks," according to one of the documents, which also reveal that the Treasury has established a crypto policy unit.

Read More: Australia Releases Token Mapping Consultation Paper, Plans to Reveal Crypto Rule Framework in 2023