Last Updated on 17/10/2021 by TheDigitalHacker
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has stated that cryptocurrencies, or at least the technology behind them, will not be completely banned.
“From our viewpoint, we are very aware that we are not ruling out all possibilities. At an India Today conclave, Sitharaman said, “We will allow some windows for people to do experiments on blockchain, bitcoins, or cryptocurrencies.”
Fintech, she said, relies on certain experiments and will have the window open. “We’re not going to turn it off,” she said emphatically.
However, the Cabinet note would specify the type of formulation, she said, adding that the note will be ready soon. “It is almost over, and then it will be shown to the Cabinet. The Supreme Court has weighed in on the topic of cryptocurrencies.
She said, “We are very clear that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will make a decision on an official cryptocurrency.”
She described blockchain technology as a wide field in which India has a competitive advantage. “A lot of fintech firms have made considerable progress in this field. We’ve prepared a number of presentations. A lot of work is being undertaken at the state level. And, in IFSC or Gift, we want to move it to the next level,”- said FM.
Anurag Thakur, the Minister of State for Finance, had previously stated in Parliament that there are various meanings for cryptocurrencies or virtual currencies around the world. Former finance secretary Subhash Chandra Garg led an inter-ministerial committee (IMC) that proposed a draught Bill to outlaw cryptocurrencies. “The government will make a decision based on the IMC’s recommendations,” in a written answer to a query in Parliament, Sitharaman said.
Thakur had claimed that current laws are insufficient to deal with the issue. He added that the government established the IMC and that it had submitted its report, and that there had also been a meeting of an empowered technology community earlier.
The committee of secretaries, chaired by the Cabinet secretary, has also submitted its report, according to Thakur, and the Bill is currently being finalised. It will be submitted to the Cabinet in the immediate future.
In March 2020, the Supreme Court overturned the Reserve Bank of India’s instructions to banks to stop providing services to crypto trading platforms, creating doubt about the status of virtual currencies in India.
The proposed law is supposed to clear government’s stance on the cryptocurrencies.
