Australia passes its first cryptocurrency regulatory bill, requiring exchanges to obtain a financial services license within six months

Australia has officially passed the "2025 Company Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill," becoming the country's first comprehensive digital asset regulatory legislation. The bill requires cryptocurrency exchanges and custodial platforms to apply for a financial services license from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and to complete compliance within six months.

The new law establishes two types of regulated entities: "digital asset platforms" and "tokenized custodial platforms," which are subject to the same core rules for client asset protection, information disclosure, and dispute resolution as brokers and fund managers. The aim is to prevent risks such as the mixing and misappropriation of client assets. Research institutions estimate that Australia could generate up to AUD 24 billion annually from the tokenized market, payments, and digital assets, accounting for about 1% of GDP; without a regulatory framework, this figure could drop to only about AUD 1 billion by 2030.