Regulating Australia’s Digital Asset Platforms: What’s Changed?
26 November 2025 — Today the Government introduced the updated Digital Asset reforms to Parliament — a major milestone in establishing clearer, safer and more innovation-friendly rules for Australia’s digital asset ecosystem.
While the core architecture remains the same, the Bill introduces several material policy shifts that will influence how platform operators, custodians, exchanges and DeFi builders navigate the regulatory landscape.
Key Updates Include:
Shorter transition pathway – a single 6-month transition period replaces the longer, two-stage model, increasing the importance of timely AFSL applications.
Clearer separation between custodial and non-custodial staking – non-custodial activities remain outside the licensing perimeter, while custodial staking sits cleanly within regulated DAP/TCP structures.
More future-proof treatment of public token infrastructure and DeFi protocols – a protocol-based definition provides greater clarity for L1s, L2s, AMMs and other decentralised systems.
Explicit rules for wrapped tokens – reducing uncertainty and avoiding unintended classification as derivatives or MIS products.
Stronger operator accountability – platforms bear full responsibility for outsourced functions and agent activity.
These changes aim to balance consumer protection, market integrity and innovation, while providing much-needed clarity for industry participants building in Australia.
FinTech Australia will continue to analyse the implications for our members and work closely with Treasury, ASIC and the Government to ensure the framework is workable, proportionate and aligned with global best practice, and there is a smooth transition.
