TV Sumanathan, the Indian government’s finance minister, is said to be opposed to a narrative cryptocurrency that will be widely adopted in the country, rejecting its use as a fiat currency.
According to a report by Asian News International on Wednesday, Sumanathan said that the Reserve Bank of India or RBI-backed digital rupee will be accepted as legal tender, but major cryptocurrencies have no chance of doing so. The finance minister added that since digital assets, including bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH), do not have government approval, they are likely to remain “assets whose value will be decided between two people.”
“The digital rupee issued by the Reserve Bank of India will become legal tender,” Sumanathan said. “The rest are not legal tender and will never be legal tender. Bitcoin, Ethereum or NFT will never be legal tender […] You can buy gold, diamonds, cryptocurrencies, but they will not be approved by the government.”
The finance minister added:
“People who invest in private cryptocurrencies should understand that they do not have permission from the authorities. There is no guarantee whether your investment will be successful or not, you may suffer losses and the authorities are not responsible for this.”
Sumanathan’s remarks follow Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s announcement yesterday that the country plans to launch a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, by 2023, adding that it could give a “big boost” to the digital economy. He also proposed that digital asset transactions be taxed at a rate of 30%.
RELATED: India Misinterprets Private Crypto Ban, Crypto Bill Creator Says
Indian lawmakers have previously introduced a bill to ban the use of “private cryptocurrencies” in the country. However, the bulletin of India’s lower house released on Tuesday showed that the bill was not considered in the budget session until May. Instead, the government announced a training event for lawmakers on cryptocurrencies and their impact on the economy.
