Melbourne, Australia – Binance Australia’s General Manager, Ben Rose, has conveyed his optimism regarding the eventual alignment of Australian regulators with favorable cryptocurrency regulations. Speaking at the Intersekt Fintech conference in Melbourne on August 31, Rose expressed his faith in the government’s ability to craft appropriate policies for the burgeoning digital asset space.
“There are lots of very smart people in the government working really hard on [crypto] policy, so I’m really confident that we’ll get there in the end,” said Rose.
Rose’s remarks come amidst a backdrop of recent regulatory scrutiny and challenges faced by the Binance Australia exchange. In July, reports emerged of regulatory investigations, and the traditional finance sector imposed several banking restrictions on the cryptocurrency industry.
On May 18, Binance Australia faced a significant setback when it was abruptly severed from Australia’s banking system. Payments firm Cuscal “offboarded” the exchange, citing a “high risk” of scams and fraud as the reason.
Subsequently, the exchange had to discontinue its support for all Australian dollar trading pairs and suspend all AUD-denominated deposits and withdrawals.
Addressing the sentiment surrounding his exchange, Rose emphasized Binance’s dedication to restoring its banking relationships and reinstating fiat ramp services for its one million Australian customers.
“We’re having some really good conversations, and while we haven’t got any specific outcomes right now, I’m really focused on making the changes we need to make,” Rose commented.
Despite the ongoing challenges, Rose remains steadfast in his belief that Australian regulators will ultimately arrive at a favorable decision regarding crypto regulation.
“Australia’s got a really important decision to make, and we’re waiting to see what the Treasury’s consultation around the licensing frameworks looks like. We’re really positive that’s going to make a big difference,” Rose explained.
“I’ve just come out of a round table with the Treasury and ASIC, and I can tell you that there’s really good engagement between the industry and regulators,” he added. “I’m confident that we’ll get there. I just hope it’s sooner rather than later.”
Christian Westerlind Wigstrom from Australian payments provider Monoova echoed similar sentiments, noting that the number of discussions between major crypto exchanges and policymakers in recent months had been “breathtaking.”
Wigstrom emphasized the need for more nuanced conversations between regulators, banking institutions, and crypto industry leaders rather than imposing blanket restrictions on crypto exchanges.
“Scammers were here before crypto, and they’re going to be here after crypto. I’m hoping that we can work on this together and actually have a proactive discussion,” he added.
Australian Treasury Assistant Secretary Trevor Power confirmed that crypto-specific legislation for Australian crypto firms is on track to be delivered sometime in 2024, as he told Cointelegraph on June 26.
