On the 28th September, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) published a document providing regulatory guidance for businesses that may be engaging in operations pertaining to initial coin offerings (ICOs). The release seeks to clarify the circumstances under which different types ICO may be subject to the Corporations Act, and identify the legal requirements of different types of ICOs.
ASIC Hopes “To Assist Businesses to Understand Their Potential Obligations Under the Corporations Act”This week, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission published a media release seeking to clarify the regulatory requirements of ICOs operating in Australia. ASIC has avoided adopting a one size fits all regulatory approach to ICOs, stating “whether the Corporations Act applies to an ICO will depend on the type of ICO offering and what rights attach to the coins from the ICO itself, underlying coins or tokens used in the ICO… In Australia, the legal status of an ICO is dependent of the circumstances of the ICO, such as how the ICO is structured and operated, and the rights attached to the coin (or token) offered through the ICO.”
ASIC concludes “that ICOs have the potential to make an important contribution to the options available to businesses to raise funds and to investment options available to investors”, however, specifies that “an ICO must be conducted in a manner that promotes investor trust and confidence, and complies with the relevant laws.” The regulator also states that “crowdfunding using an ICO is not the same as the ‘crowd-sourced funding’ (CSF) that will be regulated by the Corporations Act from 29 September 2017,” emphasizing the need to “ensure the public is not misled about the application of… CSF laws to an ICO.”
The full article https://news.bitcoin.com/63601-2/
