Crypto Ban proposed by India has investors nervous, May Feed Anti-Bitcoin

[Cordillerabit]

After news broke on Friday that the country's Parliament would consider a government-backed bill that would ban "private" cryptocurrencies, India's cryptocurrency investors were caught off-guard and left confused. Given that both houses of Parliament are controlled by the ruling party, the bill's chances of becoming law are good.

The Official Digital Currency Bill 2021 on Cryptocurrencies and Regulation would prohibit cryptocurrencies in India and provide a framework for the Reserve Bank of India to create an official digital currency (RBI). Before that ban was reversed by the Supreme Court in March 2020, the RBI had previously banned crypto-trading for almost two years.

Industry watchers said that the government's definition of "private" could mean that any non-sovereign digital currency, including bitcoin (BTC, +1.36 percent), could be seen as a "private" currency. It is unclear which cryptocurrencies would be affected as the bill allows certain unspecified exceptions to promote and use the underlying cryptocurrency technology.

"An official at a major cryptocurrency exchange told the Economic Times of India on condition of anonymity, "This is (the) time to be nervous.

The move is bound to also make potential and existing crypto investors nervous outside the nation. When naming potential obstacles to the growth of bitcoin as a store of value, the list almost always makes governments try to ban it if it becomes too successful. Ray Dalio, the founder and co-chairman of Bridgewater Associates, the world's largest hedge fund, listed the government ban on bitcoin as one of his remaining crypto-currency concerns this past week, while appearing more warmly disposed towards bitcoin than he had in the past. That one of the largest economies in the world seems poised to do just that will only feed that narrative.

Source: Bityard