Reserve Bank of India (RBI) shelves on plans to issue cryptocurrency

India has been a volatile region when it comes to the issue digital currencies. We have ushered in the new year, however, the Reserve Bank of India seems to be just as cautious with virtual assets as it was last year. In fact, is very likely that the situation will improve in the near future.

The government is yet to release an update regarding regulation of the market. One knows what is happening and it seems that the officials are not bothered evident with lack of budget. As per the report published by Quartz, the minister in charge of state finance informed the National Assembly that:

“In absence of a globally acceptable solution and the need to devise technically feasible solution, the department is pursuing the matter with due caution. It is difficult to state a specific timeline to come up with clear recommendations.”

The RBI, on the other hand, is reported to have recalled its plans to issue a central bank regulated digital asset. The central has been quite anti-virtual assets, however, in April 2018 there emerged a report that said that the authority was exploring issuing a digital token referred to as Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). At the time, a source speaking to Hindu Business Line said “The government doesn’t want the digital currency any more. It thinks it is too early to even think about a digital currency.”

The RBI still view cryptocurrency as a money laundering platform in addition to various cyber security issues. The founder of Belfrics, a digital asset exchange Praveen Kumar states in regards to the failed plans:

“It is premature for RBI to launch crypto-rupee, as more understanding of the crypto economy need to be achieved. It is a right decision to delay the process and see how the publicly traded peer-to-peer economy is shaping up.”