Crypto Regulation: India Collaborating With G20 Countries To Formulate Global Policy, Pankaj Chaudhary Says

The nature of crypto assets is said to be not bound by borders and necessitate cooperation between nations.

Cryptocurrencies are clubbed under virtual digital assets (VDAs) in India.

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Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary on Monday informed the Parliament that India is working with G20 nations to establish a globally coordinated policy on crypto assets. With its G20 Presidency, the country is taking advantage of the opportunity to prioritise different issues, including crypto assets, for international collaboration.

The nature of crypto assets means that they are not bound by borders and necessitate cooperation between nations to avoid regulatory arbitrage, Chaudhary noted. Therefore, the minister emphasised that any regulatory legislation, whether for regulation or banning, can only be successful through substantial international collaboration in assessing the risks and benefits and developing shared taxonomy and standards.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently announced that there will be additional discussions on crypto assets during the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings in April, to be held in Washington. Additionally, in July, the Financial Stability Board (FSB) will present their paper on regulating crypto assets, which will be discussed at the next meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors.

Sitharaman expressed her satisfaction that the position India has been taking for some time now, that anything outside of the central bank cannot be considered a currency, is now gaining acknowledgement from other countries. She also noted that the technology underlying crypto assets have great potential in fintech.

The two-day Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting concluded with the grouping anticipating the IMF-FSB synthesis paper on crypto assets, set to be released in September.

Meanwhile, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor, Shaktikanta Das, emphasized the risks associated with cryptocurrencies, including threats to financial stability, monetary systems, cyber security, and overall financial stability, highlighting the need for a closer look at these products.

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