Australia announces a review of its payment systems in light of the growing popularity of cryptocurrency

<p>The Federal Government has signalling its intention to reform Australia's payment systems in order to strengthen regulation of digital payment methods and cryptocurrencies.</p> <p>This week, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg stated that Australia's regulatory framework for payment systems has remained largely unchanged since the 1990s, despite a sea change in how consumers shop and spend.</p> <p>Additionally, with numerous central banks worldwide developing their own digital currencies, Mr Fryenberg stated that Australia cannot afford to be "disenfranchised" in the new era of digital payments.</p> <p>"Australia's sovereignty over the payment system must be preserved," Mr Frydenberg stated.</p> <p>A shifting landscape of payment methods</p> <p>My Frydenberg's speech highlighted the evolution of Australia's payment landscape over the last several decades.</p> <p>He cited a decline in the use of checks as an example of this transformation. In 1985, the Treasurer reported that cheques accounted for 85 percent of non-cash transactions. By 1995, this figure had dropped to 38%, and cheques now account for less than 0.2% of all non-cash transactions.</p> <p>On the other hand, cash usage is declining, having fallen from approximately two-thirds of consumer payments a decade ago to less than one-third today.</p> <p>The Reserve Bank of Australia's payment data confirms this, indicating that Australians are carrying less and less cash as the years pass.</p> <p>According to RBA data, approximately 75,000 cash withdrawals from ATMs were made in December 2008 across Australia, totalling approximately $13.5 billion in cash.</p> <p>This number has steadily declined since then, with only 25,000 ATM withdrawals totalling $7 billion in September 2021.</p> <p>On the other hand, nearly half of all Australians now make the majority of their payments via mobile phone, and the country has over five million active buy now, pay later customer accounts.</p> <p>"The global crypto-asset market is valued at more than US$2 trillion, with