Australia Cracks Down on Online Gambling

Australian authorities have prohibited its population from using cryptocurrencies and credit cards to engage in online gambling. According to local news reports, the government announced the ban in January and said it would be enacted today.

The Australian government offered a six-month transition period for gambling companies, allowing them to make the necessary changes and alert users of the soon-to-be-enacted ban. According to the report, companies that do not comply with the new ruling could face fines of up to AUD 234,750, worth around $150,000.

The ban includes credit cards linked to digital wallets, Bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies, and any new form of credit. This new rule brings online gambling regulation in line with the land-based gambling rules. However, it does not affect online lottery payments, which still allow credit card use.

Equal Regulations for All Gambling Forms

Kai Cantwell, Chief Executive of Responsible Wagering Australia, urged the Australian government to equalize regulations among all gambling forms. He stated, "If consumer protection measures aren't consistent across all forms of gambling, it will incentivize vulnerable Australians to move to less-regulated types of gambling, where they are more at risk of harm."

According to the report, the government's crypto usage ban for online gambling aims to prevent Australian citizens from "gambling away money they do not have" and minimize gambling harm.

Michelle Rowland, Australia's communications minister, explained that the government is working on "benefiting thousands of vulnerable Australians" with its crackdown on online gambling platforms.

Historical Context and Current Trends

Gambling is a popular pastime activity among Australians. The country has a long history with the industry, which rapidly grew in the mid-90s. In 2007, Australia had the highest gambling rate in the world, with 80% of the adult population engaged in it.

In 2022, online gambling became the fastest-growing sector of the industry. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), problem gambling is a major public issue in the country, with an estimated $25 billion in losses on legal forms of gambling each year. This figure represented the largest per capita losses in the world two years ago.

Crypto and Gambling: A Growing Issue

The crypto industry has discussed using cryptocurrencies to gamble. As reported by Bitcoinist, one of the developers of the Solana-based Cypher protocol gambled away the project's funds.

In May, one of the protocol's core developers confessed to stealing $300,000 in different cryptocurrencies from Cypher's wallets to fund his gambling addiction.

Per the report, the developer lost the funds from the Cypher Redemption Package after gambling them away, affecting thousands of users and leaving little to no hope of retrieving the investors' funds.

Final Thoughts

It's worth noting that, despite being a growing issue, problem gambling is not inherently related to crypto, and cryptocurrencies are not the cause of gambling addiction.

However, some studies and surveys conducted in the UK have pointed out that at-risk people perceive crypto investments as a form of gambling.

They are experiencing harm from investing in cryptocurrencies and other high-risk trading products, experiencing similar difficulties that people report with gambling harms.