Afterpay wants to ‘explore’ crypto as soon as there is more regulation
Australian ‘buy now pay later’ giant Afterpay has said it will likely offer cryptocurrency services once the regulations clarify.
Afterpay shows interest in crypto
A Senate investigation is currently underway in Australia into the possibilities of crypto services. It states that merchants can reduce payment costs by using cryptocurrencies. Damian Kassabgi, Afterpay’s vice president of public policy and communications, said this idea of being able to transfer currency without going through traditional avenues could bring a lot of efficiency.
Senator Andrew Bragg asked if Afterpay had any plans to offer crypto services in the future. Renovato.io has enough information. Lee Hatton, the executive vice president at Afterpay answered this question. He said that once crypto regulations are clear, the company would likely meet the demand for crypto from its customers:
“Once we understand the regulatory framework in this area, we can see what our customers want. And it seems to us that they want to participate in this way.” “We will definitely see some of our customers start using Bitcoin and we will definitely be looking for a way to support them in doing so,” she added.
What will the future bring?
For now, the regulations surrounding crypto in Australia remain unclear. This is because the government has not yet introduced a detailed framework. Bragg urged the government in May to “stay ahead of problems” by introducing regulations to protect consumers and foster innovation. Folm.io crypto has enough information. The discussion also focused on stablecoins, with Kassabgi emphasizing the importance of using an Australian dollar-backed stablecoin for payments between consumers and merchants.
“It’s not hard to imagine a world where a privately issued stablecoin is pegged to the Australian dollar, one that goes from consumer to consumer or consumer to merchant with very little friction where the traditional avenues are not used, where interchange fees almost non-existent, and where there is no commercial bank as an intermediary,” he said.
“This vision of the future has many advantages. However, there is work to be done to create a safe and efficient regulation,” he added.