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India might opt for crypto regulation instead of a total ban

Minister of State of Finance Anurag Singh Thakur clarified the government's stance on cryptocurrencies.

Image by Eivind Pedersen from Pixabay

Wed, 03 Feb 2021, 12:57 pm UTC

India’s crypto community was caught off-guard when news broke Friday that the Parliament will be considering a bill described to be anti-private cryptocurrency in its next budget session. However, recent reports are now saying that the government might opt to regulate the industry instead of imposing a total ban.

Contrary to previous reports, it appears that India might not totally ban cryptocurrencies but opt for regulating the industry. Talking in the upper house of India’s parliament the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur clarified that the aim is to eliminate illicit crypto transactions and prevent their use in payments, according to Coindesk.

“The government does not consider cryptocurrencies legal tender or coins and will take all measures to eliminate use of these crypto-assets in financing illegitimate activities or as part of the payment system,” Anurag Singh Thakur said in the question and answer session.

Many interpreted the Finance Minister’s comments as positive for the industry. “While this does not indicate the future of crypto industry in India, this is evidence that it is moving in a direction favorable to crypto,” Unocoin crypto exchange CEO Sathvik Vishwanath said, according to Bitcoin.com.

Shri Anurag Thaku’s answers “goes to show that government is focused on curbing illegal activities & payment systems,” according to Nischal Shetty, CEO of local crypto exchange Wazirx. “This clears more confusion that there won’t be a complete ban on crypto.”

“I do not believe there will be a complete ban on crypto in India,” Shetty previously said. “Most importantly, no government anywhere in the world will destroy Rs. 7,500+ crore worth of assets belonging to 7 million people.”

Kumar Gaurav, the CEO of crypto banking platform Cashaa, is hopeful that the Indian government won’t hinder the lawful use of cryptocurrencies while trying to weed out its use in scams. “We are positive that the government will come up with regulations and policies that will put control on the scams and let the innovation in the industry, including the crypto like bitcoin, cashaa, ethereum that are built on the public chain to grow and thrive,” he said.

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