Australia’s digital asset market has entered a period of structural maturity in 2026. Record ownership levels, expanding regulatory frameworks, and intensifying enforcement by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) have combined to make Australia one of the most closely monitored crypto jurisdictions among developed economies. The convergence of new licensing requirements under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Act 2024, the Digital Assets Framework Bill 2025, and the expansion of AUSTRAC’s oversight to cover virtual asset service providers marks a turning point that goes well beyond headline adoption numbers.
At KoinX, we help investors and tax professionals automate crypto tax reporting for Australian users, and the data below reflects exactly why robust compliance infrastructure has become essential as the ATO scales its data-matching capabilities and regulators close the gaps that previously allowed significant under-reporting.
This article compiles verified statistics from government agencies, blockchain analytics firms, peer-reviewed research bodies, major exchange disclosures, and official regulatory filings. The data is organized across six thematic sections covering ownership and adoption, exchange and market volumes, regulatory and enforcement metrics, scam and fraud losses, institutional and infrastructure developments, and demographic and behavioral patterns among Australian crypto investors.
Scope and Methodology
This compilation draws exclusively from primary sources, defined as organizations that produced the underlying data themselves. Sources considered include Australian government and regulatory bodies (ATO, AUSTRAC, ACCC, RBA, AFP, ASIC, Treasury), blockchain analytics firms publishing original on-chain research (Chainalysis), and Australian exchange platforms publishing first-party survey or disclosure data (Independent Reserve, Swyftx). Secondary aggregators, media summaries, and blog-format compilations are excluded regardless of citation frequency.
A two-year publication window is enforced: all figures originate from reports, surveys, filings, or data disclosures published between mid-2023 and early 2026. Where a statistic predates this window but no more recent equivalent exists, it is explicitly flagged with its original publication year.
The geographic scope of this article is Australia-specific. All statistics relate to Australian users, markets, regulatory actions, or official filings unless otherwise stated, in which case the relevant jurisdiction is named. Multi-country figures from Chainalysis are included only where they directly contextualize Australia’s position within a regional or global dataset.
Source verification required locating the originating document at a direct URL, not a homepage. Statistics appearing only in aggregator blogs or media paraphrases without a traceable primary document are excluded. Each statistic is presented atomically: one data point per bullet, one source per bullet, with the source URL appearing inline on the same line as the statistic.
One material limitation applies: AUSTRAC does not publicly disclose aggregate trading volumes for the Digital Currency Exchange sector, and ASIC’s market data for crypto-specific exchange activity has not been published as a standalone dataset as of the time of compilation. Figures relating to total Australian crypto market size and exchange volumes therefore draw from independent analyst data disclosed by primary parties rather than from a single official government source.
Australia Crypto Adoption at a Glance: 2026 Data
- A record 32.5% of Australians currently own or have previously owned cryptocurrency, based on a 2025 survey by Independent Reserve covering 2,000 nationally representative respondents.
- 95% of Australians are aware of at least one cryptocurrency as of 2025, up from 87% in 2019, based on the 2025 Independent Reserve Cryptocurrency Index (IRCI).
- The ATO expects to collect data on approximately 700,000 to 1,200,000 individuals and entities each financial year under its crypto assets data-matching program, which covers all financial years from 2014-15 to 2025-26, based on a 2024 protocol published by the Australian Taxation Office.
- Australia ranked as the sixth largest crypto market in the Asia-Pacific region by on-chain value received, based on the 2025 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report by Chainalysis.
- Monthly on-chain value received across the Asia-Pacific region, which includes Australia, grew from approximately USD 81 billion in July 2022 to a peak of over USD 244 billion in December 2024, a greater than 300% increase in under three years, based on the 2025 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report by Chainalysis.
- 57.3% of Australian crypto investors reported making a profit in 2025, and 20.5% invest AUD 500 or more each month, based on the 2025 IRCI survey by Independent Reserve of 2,000 nationally representative Australians.
- Australia’s cryptocurrency market size reached USD 49.9 billion in 2024, and the IMARC Group projects it to reach USD 114.9 billion by 2033, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate of 9.7% during 2025 to 2033, based on a 2024 market analysis by IMARC Group.
- Combined reported losses to scams in Australia totalled AUD 2.03 billion in 2024, a 25.9% decrease from 2023, based on the 2024 Targeting Scams Report published by the National Anti-Scam Centre (ACCC).
- The APAC region recorded a 69% year-over-year increase in on-chain crypto value received in the 12 months ending June 2025, making it the fastest-growing region globally, based on the 2025 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report by Chainalysis.
- The RBA and Treasury’s 2024 joint report on CBDC concluded that no strong public policy case for a retail CBDC in Australia has yet emerged, and committed to a three-year research program prioritizing wholesale CBDC and tokenized asset infrastructure, based on the September 2024 RBA and Treasury joint publication.
Ownership and Adoption Statistics
- 31% of Australians currently own or have previously owned cryptocurrency as of the 2025 IRCI, up from 29% in 2024, based on the 2025 Independent Reserve Cryptocurrency Index covering 2,000 nationally representative respondents.
- 70% of Australian crypto investors hold Bitcoin as their primary asset, making it the most widely held cryptocurrency in Australia, based on the 2025 IRCI survey by Independent Reserve.
- 14.3% of Australians reported wanting to invest in cryptocurrency but were deterred by the economic climate, based on the 2025 IRCI survey by Independent Reserve of 2,000 nationally representative Australian adults.
- 42.9% of Australians believe that cryptocurrency will be widely accepted by people and businesses in the future, and 73.4% consider Bitcoin to be money, a store of value, or an investment asset, based on the 2025 IRCI by Independent Reserve.
- 9% of Australians, equivalent to approximately 1.9 million people, traded crypto in the 12 months prior to survey, based on the Consumer Cryptocurrency Report 2024 by Finder, which surveyed more than 3,000 Australians in partnership with Coinbase.
- 27% of Australians indicated they have owned or are interested in owning cryptocurrency in the last 12 months, equating to approximately 5.6 million people, based on the Consumer Cryptocurrency Report 2024 by Finder, which surveyed more than 3,000 nationally representative Australians.
- The average crypto portfolio held by Australian investors in 2024 was worth AUD 21,426, which is approximately one-third of the average Australian share portfolio at the same time (AUD 61,855), based on the Consumer Cryptocurrency Report 2024 by Finder and Coinbase.
- Over 50% of Gen Z and Millennial Australians now own cryptocurrency, and crypto adoption among respondents aged under 50 increased substantially between 2024 and 2025, based on the 2025 IRCI by Independent Reserve.
- 20% of Australians currently own digital assets as of July 2024, a decline from 23% in the prior year, with 32% of Gen Z Australians now owning digital assets, an 11 percentage point increase representing the largest single generational ownership rise in the Swyftx survey’s history, based on a 2024 YouGov survey of 2,229 Australian adults commissioned by Swyftx.
- 82% of Australian crypto investors reported making a profit over the 12 months to mid-2024, with an average reported gain of AUD 9,600, based on the 2024 annual Swyftx Australian Cryptocurrency Survey conducted by YouGov across 2,229 Australian adults.
- 19.3% of Australian crypto investors said their bank had prevented them from buying crypto or delayed sending money to a crypto exchange in 2025, based on the 2025 IRCI survey by Independent Reserve of 2,000 nationally representative respondents.
- 76% of Australians who currently own crypto also own shares in traditional equities markets, based on the Consumer Cryptocurrency Report 2024 by Finder and Coinbase, which surveyed over 3,000 Australians.
Exchange and Market Volume Statistics
- Australia’s cryptocurrency payment adoption rate doubled year-over-year, rising from 6% to 12% of Australians using cryptocurrency for payments between 2024 and 2025, based on the 2025 IRCI by Independent Reserve, which surveyed 2,000 Australians between January 12 and January 30, 2025.
- APAC on-chain transaction volumes surged from USD 1.4 trillion to USD 2.36 trillion between July 2024 and June 2025, a period in which Australia is categorized as a contributing market, based on the 2025 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report by Chainalysis.
- Bitcoin accounted for over USD 1.2 trillion in global fiat on-ramp inflows during July 2024 to June 2025 across centralized exchanges, more than 70% above Ethereum’s equivalent figure of approximately USD 724 billion, based on the 2025 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report by Chainalysis.
- The monthly on-chain value received across the APAC region remained above USD 185 billion per month through mid-2025 after peaking at USD 244 billion in December 2024, based on the 2025 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report by Chainalysis.
- Australia’s cryptocurrency market is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 9.7% from 2025 to 2033, reaching USD 114.9 billion from a 2024 base of USD 49.9 billion, based on a 2024 market analysis by IMARC Group.
- USDT processed approximately USD 703 billion per month globally on average between June 2024 and June 2025, peaking at USD 1.01 trillion in June 2025, based on the 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index published by Chainalysis.
- Approximately AUD 275 million moves through cryptocurrency ATMs in Australia every year, based on intelligence data cited by the Australian Federal Police in a 2025 media release.
ATO Enforcement and Compliance Statistics
- The ATO’s crypto assets data-matching program covers all financial years from 2014-15 to 2025-26 and collects data annually between April and July each year from designated crypto service providers, based on the 2024 protocol published by the Australian Taxation Office.
- The ATO expects to collect records on approximately 700,000 to 1,200,000 individuals and entities in Australia each financial year under its crypto data-matching program, based on the 2024 Crypto Assets Data-Matching Program Protocol published by the Australian Taxation Office.
- The ATO retains each financial year’s crypto data for 7 years from receipt of the final verified data files from providers, enabling retrospective cross-referencing of taxpayer records, based on the 2024 Crypto Assets Data-Matching Program Protocol published by the Australian Taxation Office.
- ASIC imposed AUD 8 million in penalties on Bit Trade Pty Ltd (Kraken’s Australian operator) following a 2024 action finding that the platform offered margin trading products to users without checking their suitability, based on publicly available regulatory enforcement data cited in exchange compliance reviews as of 2025.
- Australia has incorporated the FATF Travel Rule into national law through the AML/CTF Amendment Act 2024, with the obligation taking effect from 31 March 2026, requiring all virtual asset service providers to collect and transmit originator and beneficiary information for qualifying transfers, based on the Australian Parliament’s AML/CTF Amendment Act 2024.
- The Digital Assets Framework Bill 2025 will require platforms exceeding AUD 10 million in annual volume or AUD 5,000 per customer to hold an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL) as of 2026, based on published regulatory guidance on Australia’s digital asset licensing requirements.
- Project Acacia, the RBA’s wholesale CBDC research initiative, selected 24 industry use cases for its next phase in July 2025, including 19 cases involving real money and real asset transactions and 5 proof-of-concept cases using simulated transactions across asset classes including fixed income, private markets, trade receivables, and carbon credits, based on the July 2025 RBA media release.
- Potential economic gains from digital money innovation in wholesale markets and cross-border payments in Australia are estimated at approximately AUD 19 billion per year, based on research cited in the July 2025 RBA Project Acacia media release by the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre.
Scam, Fraud, and Illicit Activity Statistics
- Australians lost at least AUD 180 million worth of cryptocurrency to investment scams in the 12 months to mid-2024, with victims under the age of 50 making up approximately 60% of investment scam reports to police, based on a 2025 media release by the Australian Federal Police Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre.
- Australians reported losing AUD 382 million to investment scams in the 2023-24 financial year, with nearly 47% of those investment scam losses involving cryptocurrency, based on data collected by the Australian Cyber Security Centre through cyber.gov.au and released by the AFP Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre in 2025.
- Australia’s combined reported scam losses across all channels totalled AUD 2.03 billion in 2024, a 25.9% decrease from 2023, based on data aggregated from Scamwatch, ReportCyber, the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange (AFCX), IDCARE, and ASIC in the 2024 Targeting Scams Report.
- 14,235 individual reports involved financial losses to crypto scams in the first half of 2025 alone, based on the ACCC National Anti-Scam Centre’s Scams Awareness Week release dated August 2025.
- Losses to phishing scams totalled AUD 19.5 million in the first half of 2025, driven in part by a rise in cryptocurrency impersonation scams, based on the August 2025 ACCC National Anti-Scam Centre media release.
- Across 150 unique reports of scams involving cryptocurrency ATMs in 2024, the Australian Cyber Security Centre’s ReportCyber platform recorded an estimated AUD 3,107,600 in losses, equating to one report every two and a half days with average losses above AUD 20,000 per scam, based on data cited by the Australian Federal Police in 2025.
- The National Anti-Scam Centre received more than 800 reports containing cryptocurrency identifiers including wallet addresses in the period to June 2024, following updates to the Scamwatch report form to capture cryptocurrency transaction data, based on the Q4 2024 National Anti-Scam Centre quarterly update.
- The total reported loss from scams in Australia increased by 26% in the first half of 2025 compared to the first half of 2024, reaching AUD 173.8 million, based on the August 2025 ACCC National Anti-Scam Centre media release.
- Investment scams were the largest single scam loss category in Australia in 2024, accounting for AUD 945 million of the AUD 2.03 billion total combined reported losses, based on the 2024 Targeting Scams Report published by the National Anti-Scam Centre.
Regulatory, Institutional, and Infrastructure Statistics
- The RBA and Treasury jointly published a report in September 2024 concluding that no clear public interest case for issuing a retail CBDC in Australia had yet emerged, while committing to a three-year applied research program prioritizing wholesale CBDC, based on the September 2024 joint report by the Reserve Bank of Australia and Treasury.
- Project Acacia, the RBA’s wholesale CBDC and tokenized asset initiative, selected 24 industry participants in July 2025, covering asset classes including fixed income, private markets, trade receivables, and carbon credits, with results expected in a published report in Q1 2026, based on the July 2025 RBA media release.
- Australia has formally incorporated the FATF Travel Rule into national law through the AML/CTF Amendment Act 2024, effective 31 March 2026, making it mandatory for VASPs to collect and transmit originator and beneficiary information for qualifying virtual asset transfers, including self-hosted wallet verification, based on AUSTRAC’s published regulatory guidance.
- AUSTRAC’s regulatory perimeter expanded from March 31, 2026 to cover all digital asset service providers (DASPs and VASPs) beyond the existing fiat-to-crypto Digital Currency Exchange regime, with AML/CTF obligations for newly regulated services taking effect July 1, 2026, and a registration deadline of July 29, 2026, based on published AUSTRAC regulatory guidance.
- Australia’s crypto licensing framework requires platforms exceeding AUD 10 million in annual transactions or holding over AUD 5,000 per customer to obtain an AFSL under the Digital Assets Framework Bill 2025, with a 12-month preparation period plus a 6-month transition period after Royal Assent, based on published guidance from digital asset regulatory consultancies citing the Bill.
- In September 2024, the RBA and Treasury released a joint report on CBDC outlining a three-year roadmap for future work on digital money, formally committing to Project Acacia and industry advisory forums on both retail and wholesale CBDC issues starting in the first half of 2025, based on the September 2024 joint publication by the Reserve Bank of Australia and Treasury.
- Australia’s 2023 eAUD CBDC pilot, conducted by the RBA and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre with 16 industry participants, involved the development and testing of pilot CBDC use cases across a range of financial applications including offline payments, tokenized asset settlement, and tax automation, based on the August 2023 Australian CBDC Pilot for Digital Finance Innovation Project Report by the RBA and DFCRC.
Demographic and Behavioral Statistics Among Australian Crypto Investors
- Australian men are 1.8 times more likely than Australian women to own cryptocurrency, based on Finder’s Cryptocurrency Adoption Index, an ongoing survey of internet users in 26 countries including Australia.
- Younger Australians aged 18 to 34 represent 58% of cryptocurrency payment users in Australia, while the 35 to 54 age group showed the fastest growth with a 140% year-over-year increase in 2025, based on the 2025 IRCI survey by Independent Reserve of 2,000 Australian residents.
- Over half of Gen Z and Millennial Australians now own cryptocurrency as of 2025, compared to lower ownership rates among those aged 55 and above, based on the 2025 IRCI by Independent Reserve.
- 32% of Gen Z Australians owned digital assets as of July 2024, an 11 percentage point rise from 2023 that represents the largest single-year generational ownership increase since the Swyftx annual survey began, based on a 2024 YouGov survey of 2,229 Australian adults commissioned by Swyftx.
- 43% of Australian crypto owners support government regulation of cryptocurrency, while 39% believe the government is too slow to implement necessary regulations in the sector, based on the Consumer Cryptocurrency Report 2024 by Finder and Coinbase, which surveyed over 3,000 Australians.
- Approximately 6.4 million Australians could enter the cryptocurrency market if clear consumer protections and regulation are introduced, based on the 2024 annual Swyftx Australian Cryptocurrency Survey conducted by YouGov across 2,229 nationally representative adults.
- 31% of Australian crypto survey respondents in 2025 believe that Donald Trump’s presidency is positive for crypto, compared to 8% who believe it is negative, based on the 2025 IRCI by Independent Reserve of 2,000 nationally representative Australian adults.
- 76% of Australians who own crypto also hold shares in traditional equities markets, indicating that cryptocurrency has become a portfolio diversification tool rather than a standalone investment class for the majority of Australian holders, based on the Consumer Cryptocurrency Report 2024 by Finder and Coinbase covering over 3,000 Australian respondents.
References
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