Australia's national GDP could be increased by up to AU$60 billion with the help of digital assets

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According to a new report published on November 19, Australia's national GDP could be increased by up to $40 billion (AU$60 billion) with the right regulatory framework, resulting in enormous cost savings for consumers and businesses. The report said,

"Digital assets (DA) have the potential to transform our lives offering significant time and cost savings to individuals and businesses…If Australia capitalises on the DA opportunity, the sector could contribute over $68B in gross value added to the Australian economy by 2030."

The report revealed that digital assets such as crypto assets, stablecoins, tokens, and Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) could save Australian businesses 200 million hours per year in tax compliance and administration. They could also save another 400,000 hours in document preparation for business loans. According to the report,

"Digital assets - such as private stablecoins, Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), tokens and cryptocurrencies - are a collection of technologies that enable digital representations of value to be transferred, stored and traded electronically."

The Tech Council of Australia (TCA), one of the country's technology industry advocacy groups, commissioned the Digital assets in Australia report, which was written by technology consulting firm Accenture and outlined a number of potential benefits that the growth of the digital assets sector in Australia could deliver.

The report further advocates for a robust domestic RegTech sector. It can help Australia maintain its global leadership in DA. The use of technology to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of administration and compliance is known as RegTech. It can help the DA sector grow by allowing businesses to shift resources from compliance to innovation and product development. RegTech can also boost consumer and investor confidence in the emerging DA sector by assisting in the management of risks such as money laundering and terrorism financing.

The report also suggests that using digital assets for international transactions could save consumers nearly $2.7 billion per year (AU$4 billion), or $107 (AU$160) per person, while instant settlement of business transactions could be hugely beneficial for the 4,000 businesses that fail each year due to cash flow issues. According to the report, digital assets could facilitate 'up to 100 percent of payments' if a retail CBDC is introduced, pointing to the rapid adoption of retail CBDCs in other countries, such as Sweden's e-krona.

Shashank is founder at yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist.