India will adopt a considered view on crypto: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

business-standard.com:

Flagging concerns over likely misuse of crypto, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said India will take a considerate decision on regulation around the virtual currency.

The decision on crypto will not be rushed through, she said in an interaction at Stanford University.

"It will have to take its time...all of us to be sure that at least with a given available information, we're taking the decern decision. It can't be rushed through," she said.

The minister clarified that the government is open to promote innovation and well-grounded progress made in the distributed ledger technologies, which are coming in the blockchain.

"So, our intention is in no way to hurt this (innovation around crypto)...but (we need to) define for ourselves...," she said.

Cryptocurrencies can also be manipulated for money laundering or terror financing, the minister noted.

So, these are some of the concerns, not just India, but many countries of the world have and are also discussed in global, multilateral platforms, she added.

India is planning to introduce central bank-backed digital currency or Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).

Sitharaman, in her Budget speech on February 1, had announced that the digital rupee or CBDC would be issued by the RBI in the coming fiscal year.

She had also announced that the government will levy a 30 per cent tax on gains made from any other private digital assets from April 1.

Speaking about CBDC, Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar earlier this month said a nuanced and calibrated approach is essential for the launch of India's maiden digital currency as it would have various implications for the economy and monetary policy.

The essential learning does not come from global experience but