India’s long-awaited cryptocurrency ban is coming into place with the announcement that the proposed bill will go through.
What?
It seems India is following the example set by China and is looking to ban as many cryptocurrencies as possible.
However, their move isn’t a blanket ban and there are some exceptions to the Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill. The bill covers all private cryptocurrencies, but there are exceptions to allow the promotion of the technology and its uses.
Why?
Despite experts assuming that the Indian government would eventually soften its view on cryptocurrency, the bill has gone ahead.
According to the legislation, it plans to “create a facilitative framework for the creation of the official digital currency to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India”.
So, it seems they have taken a lot of inspiration from China and plan to create a national digital currency.
When?
The effect could be seen immediately. Prices of cryptocurrency on Indian exchanges dropped the second the decision to go forward with the bill was announced. Following the announcement, several digital currencies saw a fall in their value. Bitcoin, for example, fell more than 13% on WazirX, the Indian exchange site. Dogecoin and Shiba Inu also both dropped, by more than 15%.
However, the bill will be introduced through the winter season, when the ban on private cryptocurrencies will be imposed. And industry experts are looking to China’s ban to gauge the effect of India’s moves with positivity. China’s ban was big, but the market quickly recovered.
