Officials from the Indian government are sending mixed messages about proposed

[Cordillerabit]

According to a senior government official, discussions for draft legislation that would impose a blanket ban on cryptocurrency use in India are nearing completion.

Trading, mining, issuance, and possession of cryptocurrencies are likely to be criminalized in India under an upcoming legislative bill, according to Reuters.

The official, who did not want to be identified, said the bill is likely to pass Prime Minister Narendra Modi's majority-controlled parliament.

According to the paper, the official stated that fines will be levied for breaching the law after a six-month grace period to dispose of crypto assets.

For Indian stakeholders, the situation is becoming increasingly perplexing. The Deccan Herald reported on the same day as the Reuters report that Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman said the government does not plan to ban cryptocurrency use entirely.

“From our perspective, we are very aware that we are not ruling out all possibilities. “We will enable people to do experiments on the blockchain, bitcoins, or cryptocurrencies during specific windows,” Sitharaman said. According to the study, such experiments are essential for the fintech industry's development.

For months, the government has stated that it intends to regulate private cryptocurrency use while also establishing the legal framework for India's Reserve Bank (RBI) to issue its own central bank digital coin.

Anurag Thakur, Minister of State for Finance, said on March 6 that the government was investigating the national security threats raised by cryptocurrencies before deciding whether or not to ban them.

The country's Supreme Court reversed the RBI's 2018 decision to bar financial institutions under its control from offering services to cryptocurrency companies in March of last year.

Source: Bityard