ASIC Chairman Troubled by Huge Number of Crypto Investors 'Taking Risk'

Australia's financial services regulator views increased crypto investments during the COVID-19 pandemic as cause for concern, in especially among young and new investors.

The head of Australia's financial services regulator, Joe Longo, has sounded the alarm over the huge number of people investing in "unregulated and volatile" crypto assets during the pandemic.

Longo, Chairman of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) made the comments in a press release on Thursday for his research conducted in November 2021, which examined investment behavior after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19, stating: < /p>

"We are concerned about the number of respondents who said they invest in unregulated and volatile crypto-asset products"

The survey found crypto to be the second most common investment product, with 44% of respondents saying they hold it. Of these investors, 25% indicated that crypto assets were the only investment category they were involved in.

Longo said the research highlights "the allure of cryptoassets in the market", but investors may not know what risks they are taking:

"According to the survey, only 20% of cryptocurrency owners considered their investment approach to be 'risk-taking', raising concerns that investors do not understand the risks of this asset class ."

He added that given that there are “limited protections” for investors, the lack of understanding among retail investors makes “a strong case for crypto-asset regulation to better protect investors.” investors".

Opposition Sen. Andrew Bragg agreed with Longo that there was a need for stronger regulation and for lawmakers to act quickly to protect investors. He told Cointelegraph:

"The President is correct in identifying this as a problem [...] As Chairman of the Senate Inquiry, I have recommended sweeping reforms to regulate crypto. The government should do some work and do it quickly."

Australian digital assets lawyer Joni Pirovich, however, told Cointelegraph that there is confusion over whether ASIC is properly equipped to oversee...