India’s central bank has reiterated its stance against cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether. The governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) likened cryptocurrency trading to gambling. He warned that crypto would “weaken the authority of the RBI and lead to dollarization of the economy.”
RBI governor wants crypto banned
Shaktikanta Das, governor of India’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), highlighted the bank’s stance on crypto at the Business Today Banking and Economy Summit on Friday.
Das stressed that the central bank’s view is to ban cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether altogether, India Today reported, quoting him as saying.” The RBI’s position on crypto is very clear, it should be banned.”
Emphasizing that cryptocurrencies have no underlying value, the Indian central bank governor explained.
Some call cryptocurrencies assets, others call them financial instruments, but all assets and financial instruments require an underlying value. However, cryptocurrencies do not have an underlying value.
Das went on to express his opinion on the market prices of cryptocurrencies, stating that they are based solely on speculation. He compared cryptocurrency trading to gambling.
“Anything whose valuation depends entirely on deception is 100% nothing but speculation, or to put it bluntly, it is gambling.” The RBI chief stressed. ‘Gambling is not allowed in our country. If you want to allow gambling, treat it as gambling and set rules.”
Reiterating that he does not see crypto as a financial instrument, the central bank governor said.
Cryptocurrencies masquerading as financial instruments or financial assets is a completely misguided argument.
Das also warned of the risks crypto poses to the Indian economy. He warned.
As the central bank, the Reserve Bank, the country’s monetary authority, would lose control of the money supply in the economy … weakening the authority of the RBI and leading to dollarization of the economy.
RBI officials similarly warned last May that crypto could lead to dollarization of parts of the Indian economy.” That is against the country’s sovereign interests.
India currently has no regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies. The government has been working on a crypto bill for several years. Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said last October that the government wants to discuss crypto regulation with G20 countries to establish a technology-driven regulatory framework for crypto assets.
Image credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons