In short
- Australia has passed a law that brings crypto platforms under financial services law: the Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Act 2026.
- It received assent on 8 April 2026 and starts 12 months later: 8 April 2027 by the Act’s table, 9 April 2027 by ASIC’s count.
- It makes a digital asset platform, and a tokenised custody platform, a financial product, with some exceptions.
- ASIC gave digital asset businesses until 30 September 2026 to apply for or vary a licence.
If you buy or hold digital assets through an Australian platform, the rules around that platform are changing. The law has passed. It has not started yet. Here is what it does, and when.
What the Act is
The Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Act 2026 is Act No. 38 of 2026. It received assent on 8 April 2026. It commences 12 months after assent. The Act’s own table gives that date as 8 April 2027; ASIC says 9 April 2027.
What it brings under the law
The Act makes “a digital asset platform, unless the platform is a managed investment scheme” a financial product. It does the same for “a tokenised custody platform”, with its own exceptions.
In plain words: platforms of these kinds are being brought inside the same law that covers other financial products.
What happens before it starts
ASIC, the corporate regulator, has also set out a no-action position. It gave digital asset businesses until 30 September 2026 to apply for, or vary, an Australian financial services licence.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 8 April 2026 | The Act receives assent |
| 30 Sep 2026 | ASIC’s date for businesses to apply for or vary a licence |
| 8 or 9 Apr 2027 | The Act commences (Act table: 8 April; ASIC: 9 April) |
In words: the Act received assent on 8 April 2026. ASIC gave digital asset businesses until 30 September 2026 to apply for or vary a licence. The Act commences 12 months after assent, which the Act’s table gives as 8 April 2027 and ASIC gives as 9 April 2027.
What ASIC says about some products already
ASIC says managed staking, yield products, pooled products and certain stablecoins are likely to be financial products. It says protocol-level staking is unlikely to be.
Stablecoins are on their own track. Payment stablecoin issuers and wallets are proposed to be regulated as stored value facilities under payments licensing reforms. That was an exposure draft, open for consultation from 12 March to 9 April 2026. No bill has been introduced.
Where custody is heading
Holding digital assets safely is the part of this most people care about. Overseas, some large banks now offer it. On 27 October 2026, BNY said it “now supports XRP, the native digital asset of the XRP Ledger, and RLUSD on its Digital Asset Custody platform”. BNY said it intends to broaden support for XRP Ledger assets, and that minting and redeeming RLUSD through BNY is a plan, “subject to final BNY and regulatory approvals”.
Australia’s Act also covers custody: it makes a tokenised custody platform a financial product, with its own exceptions.
What to look for in a platform
Before April 2027, you can ask simple questions of the platform you use. Does it hold an Australian financial services licence, or has it applied? Who holds your assets, and where?
My own view
My own view is that the XRP Ledger is among the most useful pieces of this new technology. That’s just my opinion. You may not agree, and that’s fine.
Where this leaves you
The law has passed and the start date is set. The months before April 2027 are a good time to know who looks after your digital assets, and under which rules.
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Nicholas holds some of the assets discussed in this article.
Education only, not personal or financial advice.