In a hearing for a defamation claim, Australian Judge Judith Gibson states that cryptocurrency is a recognised form of investment. The NSW District Court was asked to make a plaintiff put $20,000 worth of assets into a court-controlled bank account.
The $20,000 in crypto requested is to be used as security to pay for the defendant’s legal costs if the plaintiff loses the case or decides to withdraw from the case.
Although Judge Judith Gibson thinks cryptocurrency is volatile, she also believes it is a recognised form of investment.
The plaintiff is required to give the defendant monthly statements for the investment account. This may help to mitigate risks associated with volatility of the markets.
The Judge said,
“I can see the desirability of the defendant receiving prompt notification of any drop in the value of the account,”
The plaintiff is also required to alert the solicitor when the value of the holdings falls below $20,000. They may be found in contempt of court if they breach the undertakings.
“I can see the desirability of the defendant receiving prompt notification of any drop in the value of the account,” Gibson said. “These are uncertain financial times.”
The defendant’s lawyer said the plaintiff’s cryptocurrency account may be in dollars but is still very unstable regardless of such valuation.
In contrast to other developed nations, Australia has taken positive steps to integrate crypto into its economy. Since 2017, cryptocurrencies similar to Bitcoin have been treated as property in the nation and subject to capital gains tax.
Other governments are slowly but surely trying to use cryptocurrencies in their system. Brazil’s government recently introduced its new payment system with similar instant-payment benefits to Bitcoin. Brazilian Payment Scheme (PIX) facilitates transactions in 10 seconds or less through different devices.
