Government Still Sees Blockchain As “Wild West” Says Blockchain Australia

Government Still Sees Blockchain As “Wild West” Says Blockchain Australia

Blockchain Australia is displeased with the way its government is treating the crypto industry locally.

According to the association, the government is judging the industry through malicious scammers and actors who’re tarnishing its image through their activities. Blockchain Australia believes that the authorities should engage with the industry to develop regulations that’ll fit all purposes.

There has been a lot of discussions between the association and the State in recent times. The Australian government has been reviewing the importance of the blockchain & Fintech industry to its national goals and also looking into crypto regulations.

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Last week, the CEO of Blockchain Australia, Steve Vallas, appeared before the Senate Committee in charge of the “Australia as a Technology & Financial Centre.”

During the meeting, Vallas stated that the association doesn’t agree with the assertions that the crypto industry is “a wild west.” He also mentioned that they have been eager to sit down with regulators and create an all-purpose regulatory framework for the industry.

Vallas went ahead to trace the ICO boom from 2017 to 2018 and accused the government of not showing interest in the industry.

According to the CEO, there’s no appetite for Initial Coin Offerings in the country, and regulators are not even interested in ICOs happening again. In Vallas’s statement, the Australian government is still waiting to see if the industry will succeed, and that has kept them far from what other countries are achieving.

Another top participant in the Australian crypto industry had also echoed Vallas’ argument. Michael Bacina is a partner of Piper Alderman, a law firm in Australia. His area of specialization is on digital law around Digital assets, fintech, blockchain, and regtech.

In his arguments, Bacina agrees that the Australian government is taking a passive approach to the crypto industry. But he made a little comparison between the United States and Australian crypto regulation issues. According to Bacina, people in the US are studying prosecutions to understand a little about crypto regulations.

Still on the issue, Chloe White, the MD of Genesis Block, also mentioned that the government is usually interested in crypto when there’s hype in the market.

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According to her, this intermittent interest has prevented local policymakers from completely understanding the industry. As such, they only hold a reactive stance regarding analysis and policy advice.

Before now, another top shot in the government, Senator Andrew Bragg, had implored the government to do more. He had asked for clear crypto assets regulations to encourage tech & financial innovations to remain at the frontlines.