Australia has enacted sweeping legislation bringing digital asset platforms and tokenised custody services under the country’s existing financial services licensing regime. The Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill 2025 has cleared both chambers of the Australian Parliament, representing the most significant step yet in the government’s effort to establish a dedicated regulatory structure for digital assets. The bill now awaits royal assent before formally becoming law.
Once assent is granted, the legislation is scheduled to take effect 12 months later, with an additional transition period provided to give businesses time to meet compliance requirements. The bill amends both the Corporations Act and the ASIC Act, with the stated objectives of strengthening consumer protection, improving market integrity, and providing greater regulatory certainty across the sector.
Under the new rules, crypto operators — including exchanges and custody platforms — must obtain an Australian Financial Services Licence from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the country’s primary financial regulator. The bill was first introduced in November 2025 and has since moved through the parliamentary process to reach this stage. Its passage marks a clear shift in how Australia intends to treat digital asset businesses operating within its borders.
The Digital Economy Council of Australia, an industry group representing participants in the country’s digital economy, welcomed the development in a statement published on LinkedIn. The organisation described the legislation as providing long-awaited clarity for businesses, investors, and regulators alike. “For the first time, we have a legislative framework that directly addresses digital asset platforms,” the group said, adding that it marks a transition from uncertainty toward implementation.
Jazz Ozvald, a former assistant director of digital asset policy at the Commonwealth Treasury, also expressed support for the bill’s passage on LinkedIn. He highlighted that the government simultaneously tabled an Addendum to the Explanatory Memorandum, which provides additional detail on how the legislation is intended to apply in cases involving multi-party computation. This technical clarification is considered significant given the growing use of such cryptographic arrangements in the industry.
Multi-party computation, or MPC, is a cryptographic method used to secure crypto wallets by distributing control across multiple parties, ensuring no single individual holds complete authority over funds. Transactions can only be executed when a sufficient number of parties act together, reducing the risk of theft or misuse. The addendum clarifies that the law applies specifically to platforms that actually hold digital assets on behalf of customers, rather than those that merely supply the underlying technology enabling shared control arrangements such as MPC.
The legislation’s passage positions Australia among a growing number of jurisdictions moving to formalise oversight of the digital asset sector. Industry participants now face a defined timeline to bring their operations into compliance with the new licensing requirements. Regulators and businesses alike will be watching closely as implementation details continue to be worked through in the months ahead.
Originally reported by CoinTelegraph.
