In an interesting turn of events since the Supreme Court of India in March 2020 quashed the RBI Circular banning banking facilities to cryptocurrency exchanges in the country, the Indian government has recently announced its plans to introduce legislation banning cryptocurrency. The ministry of Finance on 12th June, passed a draft cabinet note seeking to set up legal framework for an overall ban. The note has been rumored to have been shared with the other ministries for consideration.
The note indicates heavy reliance upon the previously drafted Garg committee bill from July 2019, proposing to ban issue and holding of all forms of cryptocurrency with fine and up to ten years of imprisonment.
Crypto ventures are creating jobs and integrating across a variety of functions, including legal, compliance, tech, marketing, business development and finance, amid the pandemic lock-down. A blanket ban at this moment may be premature to say the very least.
The Tech Policy & Law Review 