Australia’s securities watchdog, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), has proposed a new law that expands digital asset activities under its purview. The proposed updates focus on services packaging digital assets as financial products, including stablecoins and tokenized assets. This move aims to provide clarity and protection for consumers in the digital asset sector. The proposals have been backed by the Australian government, which sees them as a way to balance regulation and innovation.
The new guidelines will require providers of digital asset services to acquire new financial service licenses. ASIC will offer a six-month grace period for Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) to apply for the new licenses. However, this grace period will not apply to digital asset lending businesses.
