Australia Surpasses El Salvador in the Crypto ATM Hub

Australia pushes El Salvador down yet another spot in total crypto ATM installations from its position as the fourth-largest crypto ATM hub. Despite El Salvador being the first country to legalise Bitcoin, making it a legal tender, installing multiple crypto ATMs across the country, and building schools to teach others about crypto, Australia has overtaken its position and recorded 216 ATMs stepping into the year 2023.

Insiders from Bitcoineer erfahrungen mentioned that President of El Salvador Nayib Bukele installed over 200 crypto ATMs across the country in an attempt to make El Salvador the third largest crypto ATM hub after Canada and the United States in 2021. However, in 2022 Spain and Australia overtook the South American country’s ATM count. In October 2022, Spain became the third-largest crypto ATM hub after it installed 226 ATMs and continued its installation drive. The United States holds first place with the highest number of crypto ATMs, followed by Canada in second place

Over the following months, Australia stepped up its game. According to data from the Coin ATM Radar Company, which deals with internet analytics and keeps track of the total number of cryptocurrency ATMs worldwide, it deployed 99 crypto ATMs in the last three months of 2022. Poland has also surpassed El Salvador regarding the number of crypto ATMs with 222 in total. According to the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, the country is trying to keep up with installations despite stricter regulations. It also plans to improve its regulation of crypto services.

At the beginning of 2023, the government intended to publish a consultation paper to establish which digital assets will be subject to legal regulation. The Prime Minister of Australia added that tighter cryptocurrency regulations in Australia are set to be introduced in 2023. The proposed regulation will involve the registration and licensing of crypto service providers to implement AML and counter-terrorism financing measures.

Australian Federal Police has also formed a crypto unit to monitor cryptocurrency-related transactions to quarry money laundering as more offenders seek to bypass the financial system. The fast move Australia pulled was unexpected by El Salvador as it just surpassed it by installing half of its total crypto ATMs in the last few months of 2022. The Reserve Bank of Australia and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre have partnered to investigate the potential applications of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in Australia. The CBDC pilot programme is anticipated to run through the middle of 2023.

ATM stats globally

According to the data company Tracker, there are a total of 38607 crypto ATMs across the globe, of which 6071 or 15.72% were installed in 2022. The country with the most crypto ATMs is North America, with 36442, followed by Canada, Spain, and Australia who hold a significant portion of the total ATM count. The increased use of ATMs has grown to a point where some countries have imposed daily and weekly transaction limits on them. For instance, Nigeria has set a transactional limit where you can withdraw up to $225 per week, which converts to 100,000 nairas. 

Australia’s crypto regulatory environment

Crypto regulation in Australia has long been on the agenda but has been slow. At the same time, regulators try to understand the market and establish control without stifling innovation. Cryptocurrencies are generally treated as an investment. According to reports, crypto is the second most common product type after Australian market shares.

It is said that most crypto owners consider their investment approach to be risk-taking which raises concerns that investors need to understand the risk of this asset class. The Australian government moved to clarify that crypto assets held by Aussies would be excluded from foreign currency tax arrangements. Australia plans to treat crypto as an investment asset subject to capital gains tax (CGT) in its Federal Budget 22-23.

The Australian government has also gone through token mapping to create a framework for regulating crypto in the country. The government has also intended to introduce a custody regime for digital assets and licensing for crypto exchanges starting as early as 2023. Managing Director of Blockchain APAC, and tech advisor for Skafold Global, Steve Vallas, said that the “token mapping exercise could guide exchanges and industry stakeholders about what factors and features either create or exclude the obligations applicable to financial products.” Vallas added that “facilitating a further opportunity to determine whether the legal classification is appropriate given the product type, its risk and how it is likely to develop or be reconstituted.”

The Director of Banking Supervision of Nigeria’s drive, Haruna Mustafa, noted, “Customers should be encouraged to use different channels to conduct their banking transactions.”As we congratulate Australia for stepping up in the crypto world, we will keep you up-to-date on any new developments.  

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