Is crypto investing and trading simply not risky enough for you? The NT Racing Commission (NTRC) has your back. Well, it might do. It’s currently consulting with gambling licensees about introducing crypto payment options.
Pretty soon then, you might be able to buy yourself some SHIB then effectively bung it all on Northern Nugget, Wheelchair Lad and Feelingalittlehorse for a trifecta. Sounds like a plan, and possibly safer than 100x leverage trading. (Ed: Absolutely not financial advice. Always bet responsibly and within your means. Horses mentioned may not exist.)
The NTRC is a sports-betting regulator that oversees the licensing of “interactive and land-based” wagering operators in not just the Northern Territory but nationwide. According to reports, it’s submitted requests for public consultation on the use of crypto assets as a viable payment method in the gambling industry.
In fact, according to an NT News report, the influential gambling regulator has had this idea on the table for at least four months.
‘Mindful of recent volatility’
It seems like quite the turnaround from the NTRC, which, back in 2018, was urging the industry to steer well clear of implementing crypto as a payment option. Perhaps the regulator has had a crypto-themed epiphany of some sort since then, or maybe it just sees the cryptographic code on the wall.
As Gambling News reports, though, the Commission is still treading a cautious line about crypto adoption on the whole, acknowledging the asset class’s volatile nature and a need for consumer safety.
“The Commission is also mindful of recent volatility in the value of cryptocurrency, and the need to ensure that risks are appropriately identified and managed,” read an NTRC statement.
The NTRC is expecting all industry feedback on the matter to be delivered to it by September 29. Then it hopes to draft regulations as a guide for the use of crypto – for initially settling payments, and then for potentially making wagers as well.
In related news, this week the Australian Treasury announced it plans to launch a “token mapping” audit of the country’s crypto sector, in order to identify and catalogue the various types of digital assets available to Australians, with consumer protection at the forefront of mind.
“With the increasingly widespread proliferation of crypto assets — to the extent that crypto advertisements can be seen plastered all over big sporting events — we need to make sure customers engaging with crypto are adequately informed and protected,” said Treasurer Jim Chalmers.
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