31 January 2019

Initial Coin Offerings – Issues Paper released

The Morrison Government is committed to ensuring Australia is a global leader in FinTech by supporting developments in financial technology innovation that have a positive impact on our economy, while ensuring that consumers are well-informed and protected against risks.

The Government released an Issues Paper today seeking feedback on initial coin offerings (ICOs) in Australia and the application of Australia’s regulatory framework to ICOs.

ICOs are a relatively recent financial innovation that are attracting significant attention as a niche form of fundraising that relies on distributed ledger technology (DLT), such as blockchain, and enables investment in DLT-based business ventures.

The Issues Paper seeks the views of interested parties on a range of issues. These include the opportunities and risks posed by ICOs for Australia, whether our regulatory framework will allow opportunities to be harnessed while appropriately managing associated risks, and whether there are other actions that could be taken to support Australia’s competitiveness.

The Government encourages interested stakeholders to make a submission on the matters raised in the Issues Paper by 28 February 2019.

The Issues Paper is available on the Treasury website.