Australia Passes Landmark Legislation to Regulate Crypto Platforms

Australia's Parliament has passed legislation to bring digital asset platforms and tokenised custody providers under the country's financial services licensing regime. The Corporations Amendment Bill 2025, known as the Digital Assets Framework, has cleared both houses and now awaits royal assent.

The bill amends the Corporations Act and ASIC Act with the stated aim to improve consumer protection, market integrity, and regulatory certainty. Under the new law, operators of cryptocurrency exchanges and custody platforms will be required to obtain an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) from ASIC.

Last year, ASIC clarified how existing laws apply to digital assets, classifying stablecoins, wrapped tokens, and tokenised securities as financial products. The regulator introduced a no-action position until 30 June 2026 for firms making genuine efforts to comply. The new legislation is scheduled to take effect 12 months after royal assent, with a transition period for businesses.

This move follows increased regulatory scrutiny. The Federal Court recently fined Binance Australia Derivatives AU$10 million for misclassifying clients. In December 2024, BitTrade, the local operator of Kraken, was fined AU$8 million over a leveraged product.

Internationally, regulators are also focusing on crypto. The European Securities and Markets Authority has suggested treating crypto perpetual contracts as CFDs, while the U.S. CFTC is considering broader retail access to crypto derivatives.