Australia to regulate crypto, as Time Magazine starts accepting Apecoin

Australia joins the list of countries planning to regulate the cryptocurrency sector. The government announced plans for a significant overhaul of payment system reforms to target digital currencies. Similarly, Times Magazine has announced that it will start accepting ApeCoin – an Ethereum-based token issued by the creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club collection of NFTs – in the coming weeks.

The regulation plan is part of the government’s significant effort to modernise the country’s financial system, The Herald Sun reports.

The planned regulations will mainly focus on crypto taxation, investor protection, and regulation of digital banks and exchanges. According to the country’s minister for Financial Services – Jane Hume, the government aims to ensure all crypto players act in a regulatory ecosystem amid increased adoption of various assets. 

“The government can’t guarantee your crypto any more than it can guarantee a painting or a share in a company, and nor should it. But we can make sure Australian exchanges, custodians and brokers work within a regulatory framework that is better, safer and more secure,” she said. 

Australia’s initiated plans to regulate crypto in December 2021 after Treasurer Josh Frydenberg hinted that the state had plans to announce new laws. The regulatory framework will be based on a parliamentary report prepared by Senator Andrew Bragg.

Earlier this month, Bragg called for fast-tracking cryptocurrency-related reforms to make sure businesses don’t leave the country for friendlier jurisdictions. During his speech at the APAC Blockchain conference, he noted that some crypto businesses had left Australia. Bragg predicted that such a trend could damage Australia’s economy. He made it clear that local entrepreneurs shouldn’t be ‘choked’ by ‘cumbersome’ cryptocurrency regulations.

Looking at projections, the crypto plan that has been put forward by Bragg could make Australia’s crypto-sector experience a 30-fold increase. According to the results of its annual index released in December 2021, 28.8% of Australians have direct exposure to crypto, up from the 18.4% who did in 2020, which highlights the need for a new regulatory framework. Going by an analysis conducted by EY, the industry could swell to $68.4 billion by 2030, securing more than 200,000 jobs.

Time Magazine is accepting Apecoin

This is not the first time Times would be investing resources in crypto. The publication initially made it possible to pay for digital subscriptions with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, including XRP, Ether and Dogecoin, in April 2021.

In March 2021, Time Magazine also auctioned off some of its covers as NFTs. In December, Time Magazine named crypto and Dogecoin advocate, Elon Musk, its person of the year. Last Friday, the 98-year-old publication published its first issue as an NFT. Ethereum co-founder and web3 proponent, Vitalik Buterin, graced its cover. 

Apecoin is the number one trending coin on Coinmarketcap at press time. It was airdropped to the owners of Bored Ape Yacht Club last Thursday. It also started trading on major cryptocurrency exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase.

The token went haywire during the first hours of trading: after bouncing to $39.40 it then crashed to $8.90, proving the volatile nature of all crypto assets. According to data provided by CoinMarketCap, it is down 8.04%  over the last 24 hours, currently trading at $10.64.