Labor says assets can boost the economy
Under the policy, businesses that provide certain types of digital assets (stablecoins and “wrapped tokens”) won’t be required to hold a financial markets’ licence – a decision likely to be welcomed by crypto exchanges operating in this part of the market.
The government also vowed to continue trying to counter “de-banking”, by which banks deny their services to some tech-based rivals – a long-running issue that’s been a particular concern in the crypto sector. De-banking could have a “devastating” impact on affected businesses, while stifling competition and innovation in the financial services sector, it said.
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The world’s largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, surged late last year in response to Trump’s November election win, breaking through $US100,000 ($158,000) in December as speculators piled into the volatile asset. Since late January, however, Bitcoin has been caught up in a wider decline in financial market sentiment, and it was trading at about $US85,900 on Thursday.
On Thursday, the government also released a detailed review that found many young investors, in particular, were not aware of the tax implications of their crypto investing, highlighting the need for better communication with this cohort.
The Board of Taxation was tasked with reviewing the tax treatment of digital assets in Australia and whether changes to tax laws were needed. It recommended against introducing new legislation, but said some taxpayers needed more guidance from the Australian Tax Office about the information they should disclose to the ATO.
It said there was a particular lack of awareness about the tax treatment of crypto assets among retail investors, who were often relatively young, which could lead to poor compliance.
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