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Stopping Scams – Blockchain Australia Roundtable

Media Release

28 June 2023

Blockchain Australia, the peak industry body for blockchain in Australia, hosted a Stopping Scams Roundtable at Sydney University as part of Blockchain Week.  With 28 representatives in attendance covering the key payment sector, data providers and leading digital currency exchanges, as well as FinTech Australia and observers from ASIC and Treasury, the discussion focused on:

  1. Recently published data showing a dramatic increase in scams;

     

  2. How digital currency exchanges can help reduce scams impacting Australians.

On Day 1 of Blockchain Australia, Sophie Gilder of the Commonwealth bank spoke of recent concerns that a substantial portion of the annual funds lost by Australians in scams “touches crypto” to some extent.

Blockchain Australia and our members are committed to minimising the intersection of crypto-assets and scams, and collaborating with payment providers and banks to ensure scams are stopped, and leveraging innovative technology to do so.

Reinforcing comments made by major banks during the panel “Banking on the Future: A Conversation on the Evolution of Financial Services”, participants all agreed that combating online scams will take a coordinated and collaborative approach across government, telecommunications companies, social media companies, banks, and crypto-asset companies, and requires data sharing and higher standards.

Blockchain Australia and our members are committed to the hard work necessary to make swift and meaningful progress in tackling scams, including:

  1. Closely examining the current scam data, assisting in standardising and collecting relevant data from digital currency exchanges;
  2. Sharing ‘best practices’ for scam and fraud prevention and establishing standards for industry to meet;
  3. Further collaboration with payment providers, banks and regulators, and academics to help implement improvements and measure performance.

“We will work closely with our members, with banks and with government to drive down scams which touch crypto, to protect Australian users” Simon Callaghan, CEO of Blockchain Australia said, “This is something Blockchain Australia is deeply committed to delivering on, and will be a key focus of mine as CEO”.

For all media inquiries please reach out to Amy-Rose Goodey – [email protected]

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