Subhash Chandra Garg, India’s new finance secretary has confirmed that the report with details regarding India’s crypto regulation has been finalized and is ready to be submitted to the finance minister for approval. Now the question remains; how soon will the crypto community wait to see the regulations in action?
A Never Ending Story
According to the local media, the report with the recommended crypto regulations will be ready for submission after more than a year of analysis and deliberation. Chandra Garg confirmed the release of the said report at an event by the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India.
The report was likely prepared by the inter-ministerial committee led by Garg. The committee studied all aspects regarding cryptocurrencies and drafted its regulations. As per the finance minister, once the crypto regulations are confirmed, the publication will be the next step.
The draft of crypto regulations, according to local media, was supposed to be ready by July 2018. Garg at that time explained that the inter-ministerial committee drafting the regulations had prepared a draft which would be discussed by committee members. However, circumstances led to the postponement of the discussion, and therefore, the document could not be published as per the planned timeline.
Later in December, the minister noted the difficulty in determining a specific timetable for the committee to come up with clear recommendations. Earlier this year, the government told the Supreme Court that the recommendation report for India’s crypto regulations was in its final stages of deliberations.
There is an expected formal announcement from the government and the Supreme Court on July 23. The court’s address will be in regards to two crypto related issues: the banking restriction by the central bank and the regulatory framework as recommended by the Garg committee.
RTI Request Rejections
The awaited government’s response to the Right To Information is also an indication that the crypto regulations project might indeed be published soon. The report is in response to a request by Naimish Sanghvi. He seeks more information regarding the prohibition of cryptocurrencies and the regulation of digital currencies of 2019.
The right to information was filed on April 26th, just a day after the reports appeared. However, close to a month later on May 20, 2019, the DEA rejected the RTI request concerning section 8 (1) as the reason for the rejection. This is according to a publication which also stated that DEA rejected RTI’s request because the information would ultimately become public.
Another media resource reported that the bill was disseminated to relevant government departments for deliberations. An unnamed government official claimed to know details of the said bill.
India’s Crypto Campaign
Back in April last year, a circular by the reserve bank of India prohibited regulated financial institutions from the provision of any crypto related services and businesses. The announcement subsequently resulted in the closure of crypto exchange accounts. The crypto community responded with campaigns to encourage lawmakers to end the banking restriction.
One of the campaigns was led by Nischal Shetty, CEO of Wazirx, who led the campaign ‘India wants crypto.’ His campaign started about seven months ago, and they now seem to bear fruits.
Shetty in his campaigns has continuously urged the finance minister for positive crypto regulations. He notes that the positive regulations on crypto would create more wealth and jobs for Indian citizens.