Australian Bitcoin Association Lodges Complaint Regarding ABC’s Bitcoin Article

The Australian Bitcoin Industry Body (ABIB), a cryptocurrency advocacy group, has lodged an official complaint against the Australian Broadcasting Corporation regarding a recent article that contained numerous inaccuracies and misrepresentations about Bitcoin.

In its complaint, ABIB asserted that the article depicted Bitcoin (BTC) as erratic and a tool for illicit activities, while overlooking its advantages for energy management and humanitarian efforts.

“The article distorted Bitcoin’s purpose, associated it with criminality, overlooked long-existing publicly accessible information, and depended on sensational rhetoric rather than factual evidence to inform readers,” claimed ABIB.

“It disregarded well-documented local and global use cases… [and] effectively reduced its narrative to outdated & misleading cliches about price fluctuations and US politics.”

ABIB stated on X that this “one-sided portrayal” violated the broadcaster’s editorial standards and code of conduct. The complaint specifies which parts of the article require rectification and identifies the breached editorial policies. According to its code of practice, the ABC has 60 days to reply to the complaint.

The ABC, the national public broadcaster funded by the Australian federal government and governed by a government-appointed board, had an estimated monthly readership of over 12 million in October, according to the digital audience-measurement platform, Ipsos Iris.

ABC informed Cointelegraph that it was currently unaware of the complaint.

Should the broadcaster fail to respond, or if ABIB is unsatisfied with the outcome, the issue may be escalated to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), which can initiate an investigation and, if a breach is confirmed, take enforcement actions like issuing warnings or licensing decisions.

Only 0.14% of onchain txs are criminal

The ABC piece, published on Tuesday, portrayed Bitcoin as a significant asset for criminals, despite fiat currency being utilized far more frequently for illegal activities.

“While Bitcoin remains on the radar as a useful instrument for those operating illegally — including drug or arms trafficking gangs and corrupt governments needing to move funds — this role has largely been taken over by stablecoins, particularly Tether,” the report asserted.

A report from Chainalysis, a blockchain data company, contradicts this assertion. It revealed that merely 0.14% of total onchain transaction volume was linked to potential criminal activities in 2024. In comparison, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that illicit proceeds from fiat currency constitute around 3.6% of global GDP.

Bitcoin seen as a store of wealth

Additional claims made in the ABC report suggest that Bitcoin has never fulfilled any of its declared objectives, lacks practical utility, is seldom used in legitimate transactions, and is no longer viewed as a reliable store of wealth.

Nevertheless, institutional adoption of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies has been gaining momentum over the past two years through investment vehicles like exchange-traded funds and digital asset reserves.

BitBo estimates that publicly traded and private companies, ETFs, and nations possess over 3.7 million Bitcoin, valued at over $341 billion.