Australia Crypto Roundup: Australian Senate Committee propose new rules for cryptocurrency

Weekly Market Update
18-22/10/21

Against cautious predictions for the month of October, Bitcoin has surged all the way to a new all-time high at AU$ 88,900.

• TLDR – A snapshot of the week
• BTC up 1.6% (US$ 63,045 and AU$ 84,986)
• ETC up 8% (US$ 4,160 and AU$ 5,622)
• Crypto market cap jumps to an all-time high
• Australian Senate Committee proposes new rules for Crypto
• Ethereum co-founder delivers ambitious price target for ETH
• Mexico upgrades healthcare information with blockchain

Australian Senate Committee proposes new set of rules for cryptocurrency

A new report by the Australian Senate Committee has called for new regulation to make Australia’s crypto industry more competitive against the international community.

• The committee for “Australia as a Technology and Financially Centre” presented its third and final report on Tuesday, which outlined a new set of recommendations designed to establish a clear framework for Australia’s digital asset sector.

• Some of the highlights include:

1. Setting up a new licensing regime for crypto exchanges and a custody or depository legal framework for digital assets
2. A review of AML/CTF regulation and FInancial Action Task Force guidelines to strike a balance between risk management and the free operation of legitimatie digital asset businesses
3. Creating new rules for companies that have the new Decentralized Autonomous Organisation structure (DAO) structure
4. Reviewing the viability of a retail central bank digital currency, to curb complaints of de-banking the practice of banks closing accounts of clients thought to be “high risk”

These recommendations, led by Senator Andrew Bragg, are a welcomed development in the landscape of existing Australian regulations that have often been scattered and outdated.

• The Senator has shared his vision for crypto currency, stating:

• “Australia can be a leader in digital assets….This means Australians can access new choices and lower prices. It means Australians can have more control on their financial destiny rather than being dependent on endless intermediation.”

• These recommendations are expected to go to the Senate, where they will be debated until a bill is drafted. The Senate and House of Representatives will then vote on a bill before any regulation is made concrete.

Ethereum co-founder delivers ambitious price prediction for ETH

In a recent live interview with Vitalik Buterin, the Etherium co-founder announced an end of year price target of US$30,000 for a single ETH.

• Buterin expects the price to rise roughly 10x from previous resistance levels that have moved between US$ 3000 and $4000.

• A price that high would give the coin an enormous $3 trillion valuation according to market cap, making it larger than all of the Big Tech companies across the world.

• Buterin’s ultra-bullish outlook comes after the recent London Hard Fork and EIP-1559 implementation—two major upgrades to the Ethereum blockchain—which opened up the doors to Ethereum 2.0, enhancing speed, efficiency, and scalability on the network.

• Ethereum’s growth over the years has seen over 6.5 million ETH currently staked with Ethereum 2.0, which is nearly US$ Billion worth of ETH in Ethereum 2.0 deposit contracts.

• Ethereum is currently the preferred choice of altcoins among institutions, beating out its closest competitor Cardano (ADA).

Mexican healthcare company uses blockchain to secure Covid-19 test records

Mexican medical company Medical Devices Supplier (MDS) has introduced a coronavirus testing service that confirms patient results with the power of blockchain.

• MDS Mexico has established a digital result-profiled platform which allows patients to view their results as their updated in real time.

• Physical results are paired with QR codes on the platform, which simplifies the way in which patients can access their immunization and testing history.

• This latest innovation uses cryptographic signatures and blockchain technology to prevent fabricated testing results, while safeguarding patient information through the unalterable, unique, and immutable nature of the QR codes.

• Each test result includes a digital signature from a physician which confirms the person who verified the test result, preventing forged test results.

• This development is one of many use-cases for blockchain technology. In the environment of health administration, it’s one that solves a number of problems with information delivery and efficiency.

• With many countries like Australia transitioning into living with Covid-19, the ability to verify vaccine passports, test results, and patient information with blockchain could be a real game-changer.

Market Sentiment

BTC has surpassed it’s previous all-time high, leaving the market in anticipation of a potential “alt-coin season”, with many expecting other coins to follow.

• Bitcoin broke through AU$ 85,000 for the first time since 12 May in the middle of the week, supported by the strong debut of the Proshares Bitcoin Strategy ETF on the New York Stock Exchange.

• Bitcoin bounced to AU$ 88,000 after finding buyers at the AU$85,000 price point during Asian trading hours.

• Coindesk analyst Damanick Dantes has suggested with further momentum a breakout could take the coin to even further heights, with price targets set to AU$ 99,000 and AU$114,000 in the coming weeks.

• A new level of resistance could be found at AU$ 99,000, and with derivative markets overheating could lead to a pullback before any continued upwards movement.

• Positive momentum signals on the weekly chart indicate that buyers may remain active around AU$ 80,000 – 85,000. If support is held at this level, BTC could find itself moving further upwards towards AU$ 114,000.

• The relative strength index (RSI) is currently the most overbought since February, which in the period led to a brief pullback, however in that cycle BTC continued to rally an additional 10% to its previous all-time high in April at $AU 86,532.