Crypto users in Australia are still facing banking barriers when engaging with exchanges and other crypto businesses, according to a recent survey, while industry executives say clearer rules from the government could be the silver bullet that fixes the problem.
A Binance survey of 1,900 Australians released on Thursday found 58% of respondents wanted easy access to deposit funds into an exchange with no limit, while 22% had changed banks to make buying crypto easier.
Matt Poblocki, general manager of crypto exchange Binance’s Australian and New Zealand operations, told Cointelegraph that seamless access to financial services directly affects participation, confidence and trust in the market, introducing barriers that can slow adoption and limit growth.
“The lack of consistent access not only inconveniences users but risks driving activity offshore to less regulated venues —something that benefits neither consumers nor the broader financial system.”
The continued barriers from banks have come despite years of regulatory progress for crypto in Australia. Crypto exchanges were brought under Anti-Money Laundering laws in 2018, requiring registration with Australia’s financial intelligence agency, AUSTRAC.
The country’s first exchange-traded fund, which holds Bitcoin (BTC) directly, was launched in June 2024, followed by an ETF that holds Ether (ETH) in October 2024.
On Tuesday, crypto exchanges Coinbase and OKX introduced services for self-managed superannuation funds in Australia, providing new ways for crypto to make inroads into the country’s retirement savings system.
Crypto businesses, users regularly run into banking barriers
OKX Australia CEO Kate Cooper told Cointelegraph that in her experience — first in traditional finance at major Australian bank NAB and now as the boss of a crypto exchange — that institutions still deny banking services to crypto businesses and prevent transfers to crypto exchanges.
Commonwealth Bank, the largest bank in Australia, announced a limit of 10,000 Australian dollars ($6,527) per month for customers sending funds to crypto exchanges.
“We regularly field phone calls from customers. ‘So my bank won’t let me. What bank do you know that will allow me to do this? How do I do it? What are my options?’” Cooper said.
“I don’t know that it’s affecting adoption. And the reason being is that we have significant adoption rates in Australia, over 30% which means that Australians have been participating, but I think that the friction causes a lot of frustration with customers.”
Australia’s Anti-Money Laundering regulator, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (AUSTRAC), released updated guidance in March stating that banks are not mandated to have a blanket ban on crypto.
Some exchange clients and employees face debanking
Jonathon Miller, Kraken’s general manager for Australia, told Cointelegraph that the exchange had also seen countless clients and employees lose access to their accounts for engaging with the crypto ecosystem.
Debanking involves a bank closing accounts and refusing access to services for individuals and organizations that have been flagged as a possible risk, with one of the most prominent examples of the practice occurring in the United States during Operation Chokepoint.
Miller said that crypto businesses experience similar roadblocks, which “creates concentration risks — since local exchanges and startups often have only a very limited set of banks willing to work with them.”
“It’s a stark reminder of why crypto exists in the first place: if an intermediary can unilaterally cut you off from basic financial services for trying to build financial independence, then the financial system itself is fundamentally broken.”
Poblocki said Binance has also run into roadblocks in Australia. Anyone using the exchange is able to buy and sell crypto using credit or debit cards, but not deposit or withdraw Australian dollars via bank transfer, which he says “reflects a broader industry challenge rather than an isolated issue.”
He added that the exchange continues to maintain alternative on-ramps and off-ramps, while continuing to work toward more sustainable solutions.
Cooper also has seen instances of debanking, which she says “remains a massive issue in Australia for the crypto sector,” with banks refusing banking services to businesses operating in the sector.
Legislation a solution for crypto banking blocks
Cooper said the most significant factor that could end crypto roadblocks will be fit-for-purpose legislation. She points to draft legislation that could be released at the end of the month.
“And what that will do is it will help sort the wheat from the chaff, the good actors from the bad actors, and it will give the banks more of an indication of who is operating within the regulated financial services industry.”
Australia’s government, under its ruling center-left Labor Party, proposed a new crypto framework regulating exchanges and tackling debanking ahead of the federal election earlier this year.
Australia’s Treasury said in March that its new crypto regulations have four priorities. Source: Australian Department of the Treasury
Miller said clear legislation and regulatory guidance are essential to deal with debanking, but also an end to restrictions on the crypto industry and its participants, which some have started to do, but it’s not universally accepted across the board yet.
Related: Australia’s government has no plans to establish a strategic crypto reserve
“What’s needed instead is a more nuanced approach to due diligence — one that distinguishes between bad actors and legitimate businesses building responsibly,” he said.
Meanwhile, Poblocki also said legislation is needed, as well as “collaboration between government, banks, and industry to provide regulatory clarity.”
“Clear regulatory guidance, coupled with collaborative efforts across stakeholders, is the best way to resolve debanking.”
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