Bitcoin Price Rises 3% as Gold Trades Above $2K for First Time

With a law, India plans lasting ban on cryptos

NEW DELHI: India is looking to introduce a law to ban cryptocurrencies, as the government sees a legal framework as being more effective than a circular from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in this regard. “A note has been moved (by the finance ministry) for inter-ministerial consultations,” a senior government official told ET.
The spur for the draft cabinet note was the March 4 decision of the Supreme Court to quash the April 2018 circular from the RBI that prevented banks from providing services in support of cryptocurrencies, said the official cited above.
The note will be sent to the cabinet after consultations and, subsequently, to Parliament. If it is along similar lines as an earlier proposal the law will deal a blow to investors, exchanges and other entities dealing in virtual currencies such as bitcoin, experts said.
A high-level government panel, in July 2019, prepared a draft law providing for a ban on all forms of private cryptocurrencies. It had suggested a fine of up to Rs 25 crore and imprisonment of up to 10 years for anyone dealing in them.