Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikant Das says Cryptocurrency should be banned in the country, that it’s purely ‘Gambling’. The RBI governor made this known during an interactive session at Business Today Banking and Economy Summit.
Technology needs to be supported but crypto should be banned. Crypto is gambling, in India we don't allow gambling.
RBI Governor, Shri Shaktikanta Das at Business Today Banking and Economy Summit pic.twitter.com/UR4UikQ11Y
— Crypto India (@CryptooIndia) January 13, 2023
In his words;
Technology needs to be supported but Crypto should be banned. Anything whose valuation is dependent entirely on make believe, is nothing but 100% speculation.
Ironic to hear from India’s Central Bank leader who holds the ban lever. “Crypto has the potential of becoming a means of exchange.” We’re not under the radar anymore.
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Statistically, India’s Revenue in the Cryptocurrencies segment is projected to reach US$3.33bn in 2023. Revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2023-2027) of 15.49% resulting in a projected total amount of US$5.92bn by 2027.
Despite, RBI’s crypto-antagonistic attitude, according to data released by KuCoin, a global cryptocurrency exchange, It is estimated that 115 million people, 15% of India’s total population, currently holds Cryptocurrency, out of that lot, 54% of Indian crypto investors are optimistic about long-term gains.
Gambling part?; a huge chunk of Crypto projects are speculative in nature. Crypto is not only about BTC, ETH, Matic, BNB. Crypto has 15-20K+ tokens in which some are scam and totally speculative without any fundamentals utility cut out for its creation.
Crypto is totally gambling? Definitely NO, when you have a new technology these types of volatility exists and fundamentally Bitcoin and some few assets are strong. So Banning Crypto in India is not the solution as here he’s considering everything as a gambling which is not so.
Point to be noted – Whatever economic policy made by the Government of India, RBI has an important role to play. And I feel when Taxation of Crypto is implemented mutually it’s going to rejuvenate all stakeholders, as regulations won’t deter builders from developing Blockchain scripts for solving societal problems.
Some crypto coins and tokens are scam, but they would obviously disappear as the Crypto Industry matures when people fully DYOR to understand utilities driving a particular Crypto Asset before investing on it and if there’s a clear government’s direction on Web3 and Cryptocurrency Regulations.
No one loves competitors’ and it even becomes more clear when it’s known that the competitor will win in the end. RBI needs to change the way of approach else they will be responsible for India losing out on the 21st century’s Digital Economic Reconstruction.
RBI should learn from countries like El-Salvador, DUBAI and other European countries, who have openly embraced Crypto and Web3 infrastructural development.
Governments’ wants people to keep money in the bank so that they get returns and banks can make percentages from the stock market, inflation rating can’t be imposed on Crypto, hence there’s less opportunities to steal money from the citizens through stiff and hard monetary policies.
Blockchain Smart Contracts will automate contract execution, reducing the need for middlemen. Also, Political masters at the center cannot send unaccounted money to spend during elections.
Closing Thoughts
High Volatility and scams are normal whenever there is an emerging tech which people are still trying to figure out; outright ban on Crypto in India won’t solve the lingering issues faced while trading on it.