Crypto could be legalised in India, according to second interdisciplinary committee

The panel is likely to make its recommendation following discussions in January.

Though owning cryptocurrency in India is, at present, banned, a recent report by New Indian Express claims that this could change in the near future.

As stated in the report, the second interdisciplinary committee established by the Indian government is in favour of legalising crypto, though only under strong regulations.

“We have already had two meetings. There is a general consensus that cryptocurrency cannot be dismissed as completely illegal. It needs to be legalised with strong riders. Deliberations are on. We will have more clarity soon,” a senior official who attended the panel meeting told the English-language news outlet on Wednesday.

According to the report, the committee has already held two meetings on the subject of crypto legalisation, and will most probably end up submitting its final report to India’s finance ministry by Feburary.

The first interdisciplinary committee was set up in March 2017, with special secretary Dinesh Sharma leading the panel alongside members of CBDT, Ministry of Home Affairs, RBI, and others. They promptly recommended that all holding of cryptocurrency should be banned, after which the RBI made crypto illegal effective July 2017.

The decision sparked disagreement between “various stakeholders” and the RBI, leading the government to establish a second committee led by Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs, Subhash Chandra Garg, to explore the potential crypto could hold for the Indian economy. It’s reportedly likely to meet again in January, to assess the insights gained from discussions at this year’s G20 crypto summit in Buenos Aires.

“We have also taken inputs from cryptocurrency exchanges and experts and will be examining legal issues with the law ministry. It’s a complicated issue. Once all aspects are decided, then we will have more clarity,” the senior official added.