Why cryptocurrencies are surging despite not being regulated in Australia - and how Bitcoin can now be used to buy a second-hand car
- Demand for Bitcoin has surged in Australia despite trade not being regulated
- BTC Markets CEO Caroline Bowler said Bitcoin was limited to just 21million units
- CarBuyers.com.au is now allowing Bitcoin transactions for second-hand cars
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are surging despite not being regulated in Australia and can now be used to buy a second-hand car.
In just little more than four years, Bitcoin was soared from being worth less than $1,000 to $81,500 earlier this month.
But the world's most well-known cryptocurrency is volatile and is now worth less than $69,000.
The price of Bitcoin in March surged past the $US60,000 mark - or $A80,000 at the time - after billionaire Tesla chief Elon Musk revealed he had bought $US1.5billion worth of the digital currency.
His fully-electric cars can also be bought with Bitcoin.
![Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are surging despite not being regulated in Australia and can now be used to buy a secondhand car. In just little more than four years, Bitcoin was soared from being worth less than $1,000 to $81,500 earlier this month](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/27/04/42261348-9514465-Cryptocurrencies_like_Bitcoin_are_surging_despite_not_being_regu-m-19_1619495883343.jpg)
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are surging despite not being regulated in Australia and can now be used to buy a secondhand car. In just little more than four years, Bitcoin was soared from being worth less than $1,000 to $81,500 earlier this month
With one Bitcoin now worth about $A69,000, half a Bitcoin can be traded to buy a $34,500 used car in Australia on CarBuyers.com.au.
Daniel Werzberger, the transformational director at CarBuyers.com.au, said car sellers increasingly wanted to be paid in alternative, digital currencies.
'As cryptocurrencies have increased in popularity, they are increasingly viewed as legitimate alternatives to traditional coin and paper based tender,' he said.
Unlike shares, which trade through the Australian Securities Exchange, cryptocurrencies are traded on platforms but are not subject to stringent government regulation.
BTC Markets chief executive Caroline Bowler, whose company helps investors buy and sell cryptocurrency, said Bitcoin was popular because only 21million would ever be issued.
'This confidence has increased demand and limited supply, as holders don't want to sell,' she told Daily Mail Australia.
![BTC Markets chief executive Caroline Bowler, whose company helps investors buy and sell cryptocurrency, said Bitcoin was popular because only 21million would ever be issued](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/27/04/42261350-9514465-image-a-22_1619495955989.jpg)
BTC Markets chief executive Caroline Bowler, whose company helps investors buy and sell cryptocurrency, said Bitcoin was popular because only 21million would ever be issued
'When limit meets demand, the price naturally rises.'
Reserve Bank of Australia governor Philip Lowe last month hinted he wanted to create a local cryptocurrency.
Liberal senator Andrew Bragg, the chairman of a parliamentary committee on regulating financial technology, this month said blockchain platforms needed to be regulated but admitted he didn't know exactly how.
'A driver of the problem is that blockchain is a new form of property right,' he said.
'It is not, of itself, a security, a share, a bond, personal property, or a contract.'
Unlike the stock market, where investors buy entire shares, Bitcoin investors buy slices of a Bitcoin much like a hungry partygoer buys a slice of pizza at a late night kebab shop.
![Unlike the stock market, where investors buy entire shares, Bitcoin investors buy slices of a Bitcoin much like a hungry partygoer buys a slice of pizza at a late night kebab shop](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/27/04/42261346-9514465-image-a-20_1619495920011.jpg)
Unlike the stock market, where investors buy entire shares, Bitcoin investors buy slices of a Bitcoin much like a hungry partygoer buys a slice of pizza at a late night kebab shop
'Buying digital assets flips the process on its head,' Ms Bowler said.
'Rather than being forced to find the money to buy the whole pizza, the technology allows you to slice it down to what you can afford.
'Ironically, the first Bitcoin transaction in 2010 was to buy pizza with 10,000 Bitcoin, a transaction now worth an eye-watering $650,000,000.'
That means someone can spend as little as $10 investing in cryptocurrency.
Unlike the Australian Securities Exchange, which operates between 10am and 4pm, cryptocurrency settlement on a trading platform is instant
![Daniel Werzberger, the transformational director at CarBuyers.com.au, said car sellers increasingly wanted to be paid in alternative, digital currencies. Pictured is a previous model Toyota Corolla](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2021/04/27/04/42261342-9514465-image-a-21_1619495947453.jpg)
Daniel Werzberger, the transformational director at CarBuyers.com.au, said car sellers increasingly wanted to be paid in alternative, digital currencies. Pictured is a previous model Toyota Corolla
'We tell new clients to start with as little as $10 or even less, and get used to how it is different to traditional shares,' Ms Bowler said.
'Settlement is immediate for example and you’re buying or selling directly with other users of the exchange.'
Nonetheless Finder co-founder Fred Schebesta, a Bitcoin evangelist, admitted investors needed to be prepared for big price fluctuations.
'It is highly volatile and a high risk asset, this is not financial advice and you should consider if it's right for you before making any financial decisions,' he told Daily Mail Australia.
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