CryptoBiz founder Rahul Rathod talks about the future of cryptocurrency amid PM’s meeting on regulating cryptos

On Thursday, November 18, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said cryptocurrencies must not fall into the “wrong hands and spoil our youth”, urging all democratic nations to come together and ensure things like this do not happen. The government and the RBI had recently hinted about floating a strong regulatory control on cryptocurrency to avoid money laundering and terror financing, rather than banning it entirely.

Speaking at the Sydney Dialogue in a virtual keynote address, PM Modi said, “India’s industry and services sectors are undergoing massive digital transformation using technology for conversion of resources and protection of biodiversity. Take crypto-currency or Bitcoin for example. It is important that all democratic nations work together on this and ensure it does not end up in the wrong hands, which can spoil our youth.”

The comments come against a backdrop of a high-level meeting chaired by the Prime Minister on the regulation of digital tokens last week. Cryptocurrencies are still not taxed in India, but have not been recognised as an official currency, which means that it won’t be recognised as a valid currency to settle transactions, but can be held as an asset like gold, share or bond.

Meanwhile, the Crypto bill will be introduced in Parliament after Cabinet approval, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed. The government has held extensive consultations on the legal framework for cryptocurrencies in India.

“This is a risky area and not in a complete regulatory framework. We are not considering a ban on the advertisements, but we’ve been taking steps to caution the public through RBI and SEBI. The guidelines of the Advertising Standards Council of India are being studied and the regulations that they have are being looked into, so that we can take a decision on how to handle it, if necessary,” stated Sitharaman in Rajya Sabha.

Respecting the words of honourable Narendra Modi, CryptoBiz founder Rahul Rathod expressed his views towards increasing panic among youth. Rahul, who is also an active member of BACC said, “We are truly grateful towards the Prime Minister for addressing the concerns of the youth. It is important that all democratic nations work together on this and ensure it does not end up in the wrong hands, which can spoil the youth of the nation.”

“We are also thankful towards our honourable finance minister who is constantly working towards regulating the sector to make it much more fair and legal. It will surely help the country in staying ahead in the global revolution and we are completely in favour of the government’s decision as it will help in strengthening our relationship with the central body. Getting regulations and working with fair policies will certainly boost the industry and people will have more clarity and awareness regarding the same.”

“As per the government’s guidelines, crypto will not be banned but will be regulated. We all need to stand together in this and favour the decision as whatever decision will be taken by the government, will definitely benefit all crypto-savvy investors and firms. We need to be optimistic about the future of crypto and should rather embrace it with appropriate regulations,” he further added.

CryptoBiz founder Rahul Rathod

The Reserve Bank of India, on the other hand, has repeatedly warned against cryptocurrency, worrying that the macro-economic aspects and the financial stability of the country will be hampered if the coins are allowed to flow freely. Addressing an SBI Conclave on Tuesday, November 16, Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das said there were “far deeper issues” involved in virtual currencies that could pose a threat to India’s economic and financial stability. “At the RBI, we have started taking a closer look at the business models and strategies of banks. Take your commercial decisions, we will not interfere, but we will see what kind of vulnerabilities and what kinds of risks are building up, and our first priority would be to caution banks themselves,” he added.

Quoting the same, Rathod expressed that different cryptos have different uses and cannot be compared with money. “The crypto industry is revolutionising the financial economy and the financial institutions need to evolve accordingly. Whatever the decision will be taken regarding the future of cryptos, we will definitely be in favour and will work together to ensure transparency and security of all those people who are a part of this global revolution,” he remarked.

Amidst increasing rumours surrounding the crypto market, Rathod says, “Blockchain technology is being adopted and used in many applications by various Governments across the world. The many benefits that come for the fields of science, medicine, engineering, administration purposes etc show how advanced and helpful this is. Cryptocurrency is only the tip of the iceberg and it creates a new asset class that can be used as an investment and trading option after doing proper research – considering the growth various virtual assets have seen in the past decade. As a member of the BACC alongwith the top Exchanges of India such as WazirX, CoinDCX, Coinswitch, CryptoBiz appeals to the authorities to consider setting up a regulatory framework sooner so the trading and investing community can comfortably trade. On our level, we have had issues from certain foreign companies – a top exchange from the United States and a blockchain firm from Japan had committed a $255 million investment for CryptoBiz – due to the current situation of uncertainty they have decided to give it another thought.”

Since India has recognised the importance of blockchain, it is likewise important to address the importance of cryptocurrency in the future of digital payments and finance. As a result, the regulatory framework should be set up at the earliest. To ensure smooth functioning, Rathod is working closely with the BACC to bring possible solutions to unlock the potential that the crypto market holds. 

Being a crypto enthusiast, Omkar Sonawane, Marketing Head at Cryptobiz is working with the BACC and the working committee for NFTs and regulatory framework for crypto trading in India to highlight the importance of crypto and the need for a regulatory framework as it can be witnessed through the loss of businesses and ever since there has been an environment of uncertainty in the market.