Odaily Planet Daily News: The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) announced that it will provide regulatory exemptions for stablecoin intermediaries, allowing them to distribute stablecoins issued by issuers holding Australian Financial Services (AFS) licenses without having to hold separate AFS, market or clearing agency licenses.

This is the first block exemption of its kind in Australia and is designed to promote growth and innovation in the digital asset and payments sectors and will come into effect upon registration of federal legislation.

Steve Vallas, CEO of Blockchain Asia Pacific, said the move is a "pragmatic" transitional measure before broader stablecoin reforms, helping to ease regulatory friction while the Ministry of Finance finalizes the proposed stablecoin regime. As more stablecoins obtain AFS licenses, the exemption may be extended to more issuers. (Decrypt)