ANZ bank settles discrimination case with Australian Bitcoin trader

Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) has settled with an Aussie bitcoiner simply identified as Allan Flynn. The settlement is coming about 3 years later after the complainant was debanked just because of his kind of occupation — a Digital Currency Exchange (DCE).

Meanwhile, Flynn who is a Canberra resident had first reached out to the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal some 20 months ago to file complaints against the ANZ bank. And now, the settlement is finally here.

ANZ Settles, Claims It Wasn’t Discriminating

In the settlement however, ANZ bank has also given its reason(s) for closing down Flynn’s accounts. The bank says it did what it did at the time, in line with the policies of the bank. Firstly, to ensure it wasn’t allowing money laundering of any forms. And also, because the bank wasn’t sure if it was another terrorism funding channel as it generally perceives of exchanges.

ANZ didn’t entirely talk about its own policies though. It admitted that debanking Flynn, could truly be unlawful and discriminatory according to the provisions of sections 7(1)(p) and 20 of the Discrimination Act 1991.

From ANZ’s statement, ANZ could be seen admitting that it really did just close Flynn’s account upon noticing DCE activity without even reaching out to him or saying anything. In his case however, Flynn maintained that there’s no way that the conduct of the bank is not ‘discrimination’. He even says it’s clearly unlawful according to Canberra law which clearly forbids that someone discriminates against anyone because of their trade, profession, calling, and occupation.

Still though, ANZ is refusing to own up to any liability saying that what it did at the time was reasonable, given the circumstances that surrounded it, and thus becoming lawful.

Meanwhile, even as the first legal battle is over,  Flynn is set to also take Westpac bank to the tribunal next Thursday. He claims that Westpac also closed his bank account with them in 2019, just for the sake of being a crypto trader.

What Exactly Does the Law Say and What Does This Mean For Banks?

In all honesty, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) hasn’t been silent on this issue.  Ever since 2015, AUSTRAC has continued issuing specific regulations regarding how DCEs must operate and be treated by the law.

AUSTRAC even said in a clear statement at some point, that the AML/counter-terrorism laws does not give banks the rights to close the accounts of crypto traders.

So with all these laws in place, one might not be far from the truth in making some calculated guesses. Surely though, while a settlement as in the case of ANZ reeks of an open admission of guilt, a ruling by the Tribunal could go anyway. A ruling in favour of a bitcoiner would definitely change a whole lot of things. But a loss will definitely result in many more like Flynn, losing their accounts as well.