Australian regulators have compared bitcoin to prison currency in a controversial consultation paper

According to Decrypt, the Australian crypto industry has been rocked in recent days by controversial remarks from the head of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's (ASIC) digital assets division. In a contact meeting on Wednesday, the head, Rhys Bollen, drew widespread discussion when he compared bitcoin to cigarettes used as currency in prisons in response to a question about whether to apply non-cash payment facility (NCP) regulations to digital assets. Bollen's remarks have raised concerns in the industry about the classification of digital assets, particularly regarding stablecoin payments.