No Plans To Introduce Cryptocurrencies In India, Government Informs Parliament

In India, cryptocurrencies are currently uncontrolled, he stated in a written response.

Representational Image. (Source: Getty Images)

New Delhi: The government told the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday that it had no plans to introduce cryptocurrency and they are unregulated in India.

"RBI does not issue a cryptocurrency. Traditional paper currency is a legal tender and is issued by RBI in terms of provisions of RBI Act, 1994. A digital version of traditional paper currency is called Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)," Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said.

In a written reply, Pankaj Chaudhary said the RBI was now working on a phased implementation strategy for CBDC and was exploring use cases that might be deployed with little or no disruption.

READ | Nirmala Sitharaman Says Govt Sees Clear Advantage In Central Bank Digital Currency

"The introduction of CBDC has the potential to provide significant benefits such as reduced dependency on cash, higher seigniorage due to lower transaction costs, etc," he said.

While presenting the Union Budget earlier this year, Sitharaman said a digital rupee would be issued by the RBI using blockchain technology starting from the next financial year. The introduction of digital currency by the central bank will lead to cheaper and faster currency management, she had said.

In the Rajya Sabha, MoS Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said the printing of notes had dropped over time. During 2019-20, notes worth Rs 4,378 crore were printed and it came down to Rs 4,012 crore in 2020-21.

In response to another question, he stated that the country's financial health had numerous facets.

"Stable stock market along with well-functioning and sophisticated market infrastructure is one indicator to assess a country’s financial health. The stock markets are indicative of economic growth in the medium to long term as the stock prices reflect the market’s expectation on future corporate earnings/profitability and hence the underlying confidence in the economy," he said.

However, he stated that in the short run, the stock markets were mostly influenced by economic and geopolitical developments.

Exchanges levy exchange transaction fees upon the broker which may be passed down to clients, he said, adding, the transaction fee is mentioned in the contract note issued to client by the broker.

"The taxes levied on sale and purchase of stocks including the taxes levied by exchanges are mentioned in the contract note issued to clients at the end of each day of trading by the broker," he said.

(With PTI Inputs)