It seems that India is taking a progressive stance towards bitcoin (BTC). Especially in light of the fact that the country is trying to develop a unified view of the classification and legitimacy of this new asset class.
In the midst of a series of government meetings, industry inquiries and growing banking concerns, the country’s prime minister is increasingly talking about cryptocurrencies.
In the Sydney dialogue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on democracies to work together to get the most out of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. He also stated that they can not be used for unethical purposes.
On Monday, Prime Minister Modi spoke about cryptocurrencies in connection with money laundering and terrorist financing at a high-level meeting. The general atmosphere around the meeting indicated that tough regulatory measures were taken, albeit of a future-oriented and progressive nature.
The Indian government has previously taken steps to build a robust regulatory infrastructure for the fast-growing sector. He led several high-level discussions, including between the Central Bank (RBI), the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of the Interior, as well as crypto experts and key industry players from India and abroad.
Despite the objective view expressed by some ministers, the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Shaktikanta Das, is still not convinced. On Tuesday, the CEO reiterated his position that allowing cryptocurrency trading could jeopardize any financial system since it is not monitored by central banks.
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Despite the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies in India, legislators continue to agree on the need for a comprehensive regulatory regime. The Bitcoin bill is expected to be presented to the Indian legislature in an upcoming session. Many hope that this will bring some peace and clarity to investors and organizations.
According to the Cointelegraph, India plans to reduce the tax on goods and services (GST) on cryptocurrency exchanges from 18% to 1% through regulatory reclassification. In addition, Peru’s central bank governor recently announced that his country will merge with India and two other countries to create its own digital banking currency, although India’s cryptocurrency regulation remains opaque.
