The debate around Bitcoin and how it should be regulated in Australia is heating up as the Canberra tries to get its head around the impact of digital currency technology on the Australian economy.
Bitcoin – a decentralised digital currency or 'crypto-currency' in which encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds – has long moved from a niche tool for libertarians to ‘stick it to the man' to a legitimate payment option considered by financial giants like PayPal and Amazon.