India is reconsidering its approach to cryptocurrencies as global attitudes toward digital assets evolve, a senior government official told Reuters on Sunday.
The review follows pro-crypto policy shifts by U.S. President Donald Trump and could delay the release of a discussion paper on cryptocurrencies initially scheduled for September 2024.
“More than one or two jurisdictions have changed their stance towards cryptocurrency in terms of the usage, their acceptance, where do they see the importance of crypto assets. In that stride, we are having a look at the discussion paper once again,” said India’s Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth in an interview.
Seth emphasized that because cryptocurrencies transcend borders, India’s stance cannot be unilateral.
While he did not specifically reference the U.S., Trump’s recent directive to form a cryptocurrency working group—tasked with drafting new regulations and exploring a national crypto stockpile—signals a major shift in U.S. crypto policy.
Despite India’s stringent regulatory framework and heavy taxation on crypto transactions, Indian investors have continued to pour money into digital assets.
In December 2023, India’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) issued show-cause notices to nine offshore crypto exchanges for failing to comply with local regulations. Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, was fined 188.2 million rupees ($2.25 million) in June 2024, a month after registering with the FIU in an effort to resume operations in India.
Last year, India’s market regulator recommended a multi-agency approach to overseeing cryptocurrency trading, suggesting a potential openness to private digital assets. However, this contrasts with the stance of India’s central bank, which continues to warn of macroeconomic risks associated with private cryptocurrencies.
Source: Swifteradio.com
