Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg has told a local industry event that Australia\u2019s digital asset plan to create cryptocurrency-related legislation is \u201ccoming\u201d soon and could be enacted in 2022. <\/p>\n
He also backed plans to run the sector on renewable energy as part of the government’s yet-to- be-established goal of achieving \u2018net zero\u2019 carbon emissions.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the virtual NFT Fest event supported by Blockchain Australia on Sept. 30, Bragg stated that the select Senate committee investigating the topic will publish its report by the end of October, which will include regulatory recommendations that can be legislated over the next 12 months. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe review is due to conclude in about three weeks from now and the promise that I made you, I will keep. We will give you a plan, and that plan will be designed to put Australia at the front end of the digital asset society and the world,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
The crypto-friendly Senator hosted the Senate inquiry into \u201cAustralia as a Technology and Financial Centre,\u201d in 2021, but emphasized yesterday that it is now time to put solid frameworks in place as opposed to prolonging the process with further reviews.<\/p>\n
While there is still a lot of work to do, Bragg hopes the plan will be adopted no matter which political party is elected in the next federal election due 2022:<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that you deserve more than just a series of recommendations for new inquiries, task forces and further review. So we will be making some hard recommendations. […] We will want the major parties, including my party, to adopt these policies as part of their election manifestos.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
While Bragg didn\u2019t outline the specifics, he stated that the plan will include recommendations for a \u201crobust policy framework\u201d focused on three objectives: consumer protection, investor promotion and market competition. <\/p>\n
\u201cNow, for those of you that say we don’t want to have regulation. I would remind you that your industry reps and the vast bulk of the industry is asking for some regulation, so there will be some regulation,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
The Senator also stated that he is \u201cvery conscious\u201d about not wanting to stifle innovation in crypto via regulation that suits the \u201cincumbent vested interests\u201d who want to see the sector \u201cdestroyed by a regulation that was designed for a whole different purpose.\u201d <\/p>\n