Australia is moving to place crypto platforms under the same regulatory umbrella as traditional financial services, marking one of the country’s most significant steps yet toward tightening oversight of the digital assets industry.
On Wednesday, the Treasury introduced the Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill 2025 to parliament, following a draft released for consultation in September. The bill has now completed its first reading and is headed for a second.
If passed, the legislation would require digital asset platforms and tokenized custody providers to hold an Australian Financial Services Licence, or AFSL. In its explanatory memo, the government said digital assets should be treated like any other form of property, making them subject to existing consumer, tax, insolvency, criminal, and family law frameworks.
The Treasury added that the goal is to ensure crypto businesses operate under the same consumer protection standards that govern banks, brokers, and other financial service providers.
Assistant Treasurer Daniel Mulino said the move is about strengthening safety without slowing innovation.
“Millions of Australians are using or investing in digital assets every year, and this is about making that as safe and secure as possible, while also encouraging innovation,” he said in a statement.
What the new rules require
Under the proposal, licensed platforms must act “efficiently, honestly and fairly,” outline how customer assets are handled, maintain strong risk and governance systems, avoid misleading practices, and provide pathways for dispute resolution and compensation.
Regulators also aim to match requirements with the realities of crypto operations. Smaller providers would be exempt if they hold under 5,000 Australian dollars per customer and process less than 10 million Australian dollars in yearly transactions. Similar carve-outs already exist for low-risk financial products such as non-cash payment facilities.
Right now, Australian crypto exchanges only need to comply with anti-money laundering and know-your-customer rules. The new bill would introduce a much broader regulatory framework, covering everything from cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and stablecoins to tokenized versions of real-world assets like property, commodities, and government bonds.
The Treasury highlighted the potential economic upside of clearer rules, noting that tokenization and digital finance could unlock up to 24 billion Australian dollars in annual productivity gains, citing research from the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre.
James Eyers
This legislation follows recent efforts from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, which clarified how tokenized financial products fit within existing laws and signaled tougher action against unlicensed operators. ASIC Chair Joe Longo recently said Australia must “seize the opportunity or be left behind” as tokenization reshapes global capital markets.
