India Will Take Thoughtful Decision Over Cryptocurrency Regulation, Says Nirmala Sitharaman

Nirmala Sitharaman said the government is open to promoting innovation and well-grounded progress in distributed ledger technologies that are coming in the blockchain

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said regulations over crypto will take time as it can't be rushed through. Image: Getty

Source : Getty

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said India would take a thoughtful decision on regulation over cryptocurrency, PTI reported.

In an interaction at Stanford University, Sitharaman, flagging concerns over misuse of the digital currency, has said India will not rush through in making a decision.

She said, “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.”

According to the report, the minister said that the central government is open to promoting innovation and well-grounded progress in distributed ledger technologies that 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.

Last week, Sitharaman issued an alert saying that cryptocurrencies could also be manipulated for money laundering or terror financing.

She said that there are some concerns, not in India but in many countries about cryptocurrencies. These issues need to be discussed in global, multilateral platforms, she added.

Though there is still no official guidelines on cryptos, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) plans to introduce central bank-backed digital currency (CBDC).

In the Union Budget speech on February 1, the finance minister had announced that the central bank would issue digital rupee (CBDC) in the coming fiscal year.

The Centre had levied a 30 per cent tax on gains made from any private digital assets from April 1.

RBI’s Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar, speaking about CBDC, said a nuanced and calibrated approach is essential for the launch of maiden digital currency as it would have various implications for the economy and monetary policy.

On merger of HDFC and HDFC Bank, Sitharaman said it is a good step as India needs many such big banks which can cover growing needs for infra financing.