“Any loan purpose that involves the acquisition of or usage of cryptocurrency is unacceptable.”Moreover, according to Coindesk:
“The move is the result of concerns over recent price volatility of the cryptocurrency market, as well as Australian regulators' increasing scrutiny over the nascent space. The Bank of Queensland's decision also comes as most other lenders in Australia are discouraging borrowers from using real-estate mortgages to make high-risk investments.”See the full report for yourself, here. As mentioned, authorities in Australia, namely The Reserve Bank of Australia, in line with the Reserve Bank of New Zealand are paying extra close attention to cryptocurrencies at the moment. This move by The Bank of Queensland suggests that they may be fearful of what is to come, should the two Reserve Central Banks decide to regulate cryptocurrencies officially. If a loan had been taken out that had affiliation with cryptocurrency, what value would this collateral have? With this in mind, you can at least see why The Bank of Queensland seem to be getting ahead of the game in this way. Australia is fast becoming a country to watch with regards to regulation and it’s anti-crypto measures. Not so long ago, whilst on the fence, Australia did seem to be nurturing the cryptocurrency industry, as the months go by and has falling market values tie in with regular reports of cryptocurrency related crime, it does seem as if Australia are starting to back away from crypto. Let’s hope that fear doesn’t get the better of them, otherwise Australia could be the next country to strike crypto off their agenda.