Indian government to set up cryptocurrency regulations in December: Report

After years of equivocacy related to cryptocurrency, India may finally be ready to put down some regulations for the same. According to a report by Quartz, the Indian government is set to lay out a draft of its regulations for cryptocurrencies in December. These regulations will essentially define the government’s stance on whether, and how, these digital assets can be used and traded in the country. [caption id=“attachment_5436981” align=“alignnone” width=“1024”]  Bitcoin.[/caption] Last year, the finance ministry had set up a panel related to the issues of cryptocurrency and this panel will now reportedly issue a draft report and bill on “virtual currencies, use of distributed ledger technology in (the) financial system and framework for digital currency in India.” The Quartz report quotes from a counter-affidavit that was filed in the Supreme Court by domestic cryptocurrency exchanges, which have accused the government of stifling the industry. (Also read: Bitcoin turns 10: From an abstract thought to being worth $6,400 per unit today)  Apparently, the affidavit further reveals that the draft bill and report will be forwarded to members of the finance ministry’s inter-ministerial committee. Subsequently, the committee will hold a meeting on the drafts, which will be made available to its members sometime in December. The news for establishing the regulation for cryptocurrency follows an April order from the RBI which told banks to stop doing business with cryptocurrency exchanges. The order saw local exchanges wind down their operations. Zebpay, arguably the largest Bitcoin exchange in India, ended up moving its operations to Malta and serving 20 countries across Europe.