Bendigo Bank is the fourth central Australian bank to impose restrictions on “high-risk crypto payments,” citing the need to protect customers from investment scams.
The bank announced on July 31 that it had implemented new rules on instant payments to cryptocurrency exchanges that add “some friction” to “certain genuine payments,” according to Jason Gordon, the bank’s director of fraud.
It cited combating fraudulent payments and bolstering protections for its 2.3 million customers as justifying the restrictions.
Certain high-risk immediate crypto transactions will be blocked, according to a Bendigo Bank spokesperson, who declined to provide further details.
The spokesperson stated that “a combination of factors” are used to identify high-risk transactions but refused to elaborate. The bank said it would not disclose which exchanges might be affected by its alterations.
In recent months, three of Australia’s Big Four institutions — Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank (NAB), and Westpac — have taken similar measures.
In an interview conducted before the recent announcement by Bendigo Bank, Chainalysis APAC Policy Director Chengyi Ong warned that such actions would force Australia’s crypto community to interact with offshore exchanges.
Speaking with Cointelegraph, Ong argued that such restrictions would not prevent criminal actors from utilizing other platforms, crypto or otherwise.
That uncertainty over banking access could drive crypto exchanges and users outside the authorities’ jurisdiction.
Instead of severing communications, Ong argues that banks, regulators, telecommunications providers, and social media platforms must collaborate at each stage of a scam’s lifecycle.
“[We need to target] all the potential attack vectors and all the potential points of interaction between a victim and a scammer. We have to tackle every single one of those touchpoints.”
Way Forward for Banks and Crypto Exchanges
Dr. Aaron Lane, senior lecturer at the RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub, said the best thing banks can do to safeguard consumers is to collaborate constructively with exchanges, adding:
“Debanking as a risk tool should be reserved for individual cases of serious and unacceptable risk, not a general posture towards an entire industry or asset class.”
Australia has considered crypto-specific laws for over three years, and Dr. Lane urged legislators to take crypto law reform “out of the too-hard basket.”
Ong and Dr. Lane’s remarks follow a June official statement from the Treasury Department that contained similar warnings.
Treasury acknowledged that its inaction on debanking will impede financial services competition and innovation and could “drive businesses underground and to operate exclusively in cash.”