Session 3: Implications of Digital Finance
New technologies are reshaping digital finance – and with it, international trade. Central banks are exploring how best to take advantage of the new forms of central bank money – central bank digital currencies (CBDC) – and curb the associated risks. While the main reasons for launching a CBDC in China and Australia may differ, it is conceivable an eCNY or eAUD will be used across borders, which could generate both risks and opportunities in both countries. Another transformative technological innovation is the tokenisation of real-world assets, which changes how assets are digitally represented, in such a way that the transactional structure and flows within the financial system as a whole will change fundamentally. Understanding the mechanics of such tokenisation and the underlying technological and legal risks is crucial for unlocking its significant potential for cross-border trade. Our speakers will share their cutting-edge expertise with these crucial innovations that are changing the future of trade and finance.
Speakers
Ross P. Buckley is an Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow at UNSW Sydney where he leads a $3.7 million, seven-year research project into the regulation of the data revolution. He is a member of the Payments System Board of the Reserve Bank of Australia, and chairs the Digital Finance Advisory Panel, and serves on the Consultative Panel, of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. He has consulted to governments departments in 14 nations, including the U.S. He is the only non-American among the top ten most frequently downloaded legal scholars of all time on the Social Science Research Network. He has twice been a Fulbright Scholar, at Yale & Duke.
Urszula McCormack is a regulatory and digital economy specialist, with a focus on emerging technologies.
Urszula has helped pioneer the creation of one of the Asia-Pacific’s most respected fintech practices. She runs a large cross-border team based in Australia and Hong Kong advising global banks, technology companies, exchanges, brokers and payment institutions on new products, cross-border transactions, financial services licensing, data-sharing arrangements and global compliance. Urszula has also advised several governments and multilaterals on designing robust digital economy legal frameworks across multiple Asia-Pacific markets.
Urszula is especially well known for building global digital ecosystems, supporting nascent industries and early-stage companies and leading major multi-stakeholder projects involving large commercial banks and central banks. Key recent projects include advising the Bank for International Settlements on the “mBridge” multi-CBDC platform, acting on the Hong Kong Government’s landmark digital green bond launch, supporting e-AUD and e-HKD pilot participants and advising multiple exchanges, brokers and fund managers with their licences under the Hong Kong virtual asset, securities and futures regimes.
Urszula has been appointed to multiple advisory bodies, as well as to the Panel of Recognised International Market Experts (P.R.I.M.E.). She is regularly invited to brief governments, regulators, academics and transnational policymakers. Urszula is admitted to practice law in Hong Kong, Australia and England & Wales.
Dr Mark Staples is the CTO for the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre (DFCRC) and a Senior Principal Researcher in CSIRO’s Data61. Last year he led the technology stream for the RBA and DFCRC’s pilot project on central bank digital currency (CBDC). He represents Australia on the ISO blockchain and distributed ledger technology standards committee. He is an experienced research manager and software engineering manager. He has degrees from the University of Queensland, and a PhD from the University of Cambridge.
Joni is a specialist advisor for crypto, tokenisation and web3 projects in Australia and around the world. Joni contributes to crypto policy efforts globally, including current positions with the Law Commission of England and Wales DAO Advisory Panel, Regulatory Interoperability Lead at DAOstar, and Deputy Chair of the Blockchain Australia Tax Working Group.
Chair
Anton Didenko is a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law & Justice in the University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney, Australia). He specialises in banking and finance law (with a focus on the regulation of FinTech and cyber security) and has published widely on the legal aspects of central bank digital currencies, regulatory sandboxes, decentralised finance and open banking.
Prior to joining UNSW Sydney, Anton worked as a practising lawyer in various roles, including as head of legal support of international operations in major commercial banks. More recently, he helped AFI develop the world’s first regional regulatory sandbox and was the lead author of an ADB report on central bank digital currencies as a response to the financial inclusion challenges in the Pacific region.
Anton is a leading expert in transnational commercial law: he is the author of a monograph on the documentary history of the Cape Town Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment (Hart, 2021) and the general editor of the Cape Town Convention Journal.
Anton holds multiple law degrees from several countries, including an MJur and a DPhil from the University of Oxford.
About CIBEL-NFACR Conference
Australia China Business in the Digital Age: Navigating the Rapids
The digital environment has radically changed the way that global supply chains operate. This conference brings together experts and business operators from Australia and China to discuss frameworks, developments and pain points with the aim of enabling businesses in Australia and China to deal more confidently with their counterparts overseas. It also aims to facilitate further collaboration and opportunities. It focuses on four important areas: competition law, which applies to businesses but has had particular impact on digital players; trade law, which sets many of the rules of engagement for global business; digital finance, an important and essential element of trade and commerce; and dispute resolution, which focuses on what to do when the deal goes wrong.
Acknowledgement
The ‘Competition Law in the Digital Age: Enhancing Australian and Chinese Business Understanding' project is supported by the National Foundation for Australia-China Relations. UNSW CIBEL is proud to be a National Foundation for Australia-China Relations grant recipient.