Australia is an interesting country when it comes to Bitcoin, as it is one of the very few countries in the world with regulation about digital current in place.  Even though the regulation itself leaves much to be desired, that isn’t stopping new Bitcoin startups from trying to gain a foothold in the Australian market.  DWV is a new Australian Bitcoin exchange, so, let’s see what they bring to the table.

Digital World Ventures (DWV)

The idea behind Digital World Ventures is easy to explain.  They intend to target consumers, all across Australia, who want to exchange Bitcoin and Australian dollars intermittently.  As is the case with any Bitcoin exchange around the world, sooner or later, you will need to look into adding a fiat currency option to accommodate for customer trading needs.

By making use of the AlphaPoint trading engine, Digital World Ventures aims to bring lightning fast trading, on a scaleable size, to Australia.  However, DWV is not the first or only Bitcoin exchange and they will be facing some stiff competition from more established names, such as BTCMarkets and BTradeAustralia.

With so many Bitcoin exchanges either being hacked or forced to shut down in the past few months, one could argue that now is not the most opportune time to launch such a service.   Digital World Ventures claims they are facing less risks in that regard, thanks to their business account with Westpac Bank.  Furthermore, all of the liquidity is provided by AlphaPoint’s global exchange network and not solely relying on DWV themselves.

“We’re all about stability and building brand awareness. That starts with finding that banking partner.  We don’t have concerns like in Canada, where banks are freezing their account.  We want to make everyone aware we are who we are; we’re not intending to go anywhere.  Hopefully, that will generate confidence that we’re not going to be another Mt Gox.  We’re here for the longer term.  We have a financially viable model and a fantastic technology model,” DWV Director James Clarke told DigitalMoneyTimes

Low Trading Fees & Future Plans

Running a Bitcoin exchange is a costly business and, with so many Bitcoin exchanges charging 0% trading fees, one has to wonder how they are even making money.  Digital World Ventures is aiming to charge a 0.7% trading fee on Bitcoin trades lower than AUD$500.  The trading fee reduces as your trading amount goes up and the lowest fee is 0.08% for trades exceeding AUD$200,000.

But, that is not all, as Australia is known for it’s taxation of digital currency transfers.  Despite this measure not being greeted well by Bitcoin enthusiasts in and around the country, companies have to adhere to the letter of the law.  DWV will charge a goods and services tax on transaction fees paid by both the seller and the buyer.

It is interesting to note that Digital World Ventures received a 40 Bitcoin loan, in February of this year, which has all been put towards launching the exchange platform.  During that time, DWV co-founder, Ian Davies, claimed that his Bitcoin exchange would break even within the first three months of operations.  A bold statement and we will see if it holds up in a few months from now.

Last, but not least, Digital World Ventures hopes to establish a physical presence in Perth, Australia.  Not only would this put their[potential] customers more at ease – as you can drop by their offices, if needed – but, it also opens up a new revenue opportunity, in the form of processing cash trading.

Source: Press Release via Email

All images courtesy of Digital World Ventures