Indian government likely to draft cryptocurrency regulations next month

The government of India is reportedly inching closer to establishing a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.

A government panel set up by the finance ministry last November could come up with draft regulations for cryptocurrencies in December 2018, Quartz reported, referring to a counter-affidavit filed in the Supreme Court of India by the Narendra Modi-led government on Monday.

This appears to be the response to the apex court’s order to the government last month to submit a report on the findings of the crypto-focused committee it had established. The Supreme Court is hearing a case filed by a group of crypto exchanges who took the legal route to fight the cryptocurrency banking ban imposed by the Reserve Bank of India in April.

Headed by Subhash Chandra Garg, a top civil servant, the government panel is expected to discuss the issue further in the upcoming weeks, the counter-affidavit said. According to the government’s counter-affidavit:

“…currently, serious efforts are going on for preparation of the draft report and the draft bill on virtual currencies, use of distributed ledger technology in (the) financial system and framework for digital currency in India. The draft report and bill will be circulated to members of IMC (inter-ministerial committee). Thereafter the next meeting of IMC will be held so that discussion can take place on the draft report and bill. It is expected that the draft report will be placed before the IMC by next month.”

The next two meetings of the panel are scheduled to be held in December 2018 and January 2019. During these meetings, the panel will focus on the draft report and the provisions of the draft bill on virtual currencies.

Quartz said that the case filed by the crypto exchanges is expected to come up for hearing in the Supreme Court today, November 20.