Australian Securities Commission publishes guidelines for cryptocurrency ETPs

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has released a response to the public consultation on exchange-traded cryptocurrency products (ETPs) along with new industry guidance.

On October 29, after months of industry consultations that began in late June, the regulator published a set of regulatory requirements for funds that want to offer crypto ETPs, including exchange traded funds (ETFs) and structured products.

According to the official guidelines, ASIC has so far given the green light to ETPs based on major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) and expects more crypto assets to become the platform for ETP in the future:

“In October 2021, Bitcoin and Ether should meet all five of the above factors in order to determine the appropriate base value for an ETP. We expect the range of crypto assets for non-financial products that can accommodate these factors to expand over time. “

In order to be a suitable basis for a crypto ETF, the crypto asset must have a high level of institutional support, a mature spot market, a regulated futures market and service provider as well as a good reputation and experience as well as a transparent pricing mechanism.

For each use of a crypto ETF product, licensed exchanges must verify that the issuer is able to meet its obligations in connection with the product, including providing safe custody and acquiring appropriate licenses.

In response to the public consultation, ASIC also stated that it does not require domestic crypto custody by companies issuing crypto ETFs, suggesting that such restrictions would severely restrict competition.

“Although we recognize the concerns of our respondents regarding the safekeeping of crypto assets abroad, such as

Related: 40+ cryptocurrency ETFs pending U.S. regulatory approval

The news comes shortly after Australian hedge fund manager Cosmos Asset Management launched its crypto-mining linked ETF on Chi-X Australia on October 28th.

Cosmos Global Digital Miners Access ETF Begins Start trading DIGA tokens and follow several companies like Riot Blockchain, Marathon Digital, Hive Blockchain Technologies, Hut 8 Mining and others.

Australian ETF provider BetaShares is also preparing to launch a crypto ETF linked to industry players such as Coinbase and MicroStrategy. The crypto ETF is reportedly trading on the Australian Stock Exchange next week with the ticker CRYP.