For the CEO of the HashCash consultancy, bitcoin is the most relevant currency in history. A section of the Indian government cabinet is firmly opposing and rejecting the authorization of cryptocurrencies.
Businessman Raj Chowdhury, chairman of finance consultancy HashCash, claimed that a ban on bitcoin (BTC) would have “disastrous” consequences for the Indian economy.
According to a PRWeb publication, Chowdhury said that BTC is the most crucial currency in history worldwide. He also added that if it does not have cryptocurrency reserves, the Asian country will suffer a severe devaluation of its currency.
Chowdhury, CEO of a company that provides services based on blockchain technology, comes in a context of official uncertainty regarding the regulation of cryptocurrencies in India.
Lately, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman explained that the government did not rule out crypto assets absolutely and hinted at the possibility of authorizing individuals to “experiment with blockchain and bitcoin.”
Something similar had been expressed in February by the Minister of State for Finance, Anurag Singh Thakur. As reported by CriptoNoticias, the official denied that it faced an inspection to ban cryptocurrencies and, instead, clarified that the intention is to curb their illicit use.
Companies Need to Report their Cryptocurrency Holdings
Precisely to combat this illegality in the digital world, on Wednesday, March 24, the Government of India published a statement. It establishes that companies in the country must report their possession of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The measure will be effective on April 1, 2021.
This provision covers all those companies that have carried out crypto-asset transactions in the fiscal year. In this way, they will have to detail their profits and losses and report the exact amount of cryptocurrencies they possess when submitting the report.
Investments Do not Slow Down Despite the Confusion and Uncertainty
Despite rumors of a cryptocurrency ban, Coinbase announced that it plans to start providing services from India. This plan would include IT services, engineering, software development, and customer care operations, as the exchange’s blog post reports.
It is also vital to consider that the Asian country has always been an epicenter in engineering and technological innovation. Without mentioning the rumors of the government’s banning of cryptocurrencies, the company whitewashed its intention to open a physical headquarters as soon as the sanitary restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic allow it.
Recently, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency fell to $ 58,956.90 at the start of the Asian session after hitting an all-time high of $ 61,781.83 per unit on Saturday.
Bitcoin’s rise would face an obstacle if India intended to ban digital assets; this is an adverse factor for the unit following high-profile endorsements this year from Elon Musk and even Jack Dorsey, as well as investments from other influential personalities like Goldman Sachs. The value of bitcoin has more than doubled in 2021, after quadrupling last year.
By: Jenson Nuñez
