Indian finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman responds to certain queries in the Lok Sabha on the crypto industry, Web3 ecosystem, etc.
MP Thamizhachi Thangapandian queried the Finance Minister about whether the government has prepared any future roadmap to regulate the crypto sector in the country.
Sitharaman stated that the crypto assets sector and Web3 sector are relatively new and still evolving.
“Currently, there are no specific regulations for these sectors. By definition, these sectors are borderless and require significant international collaboration for any specific legislation on these sectors to be fully effective,” the Finance Minister added.
Sitharaman provided the National Strategy on Blockchain by the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) which offers strategies and recommendations for the Indian Blockchain ecosystem.
When Thangapandian asked whether the government has undertaken any consultation process with the relevant stakeholders, on the regulation of crypto and related policy formulations, Sitharaman noted that the government has undertaken necessary consultations with stakeholders from time to time, including with relevant international organizations.
A question arose on whether the government is engaging with any academic or non-academic institutions to better navigate the Web3 ecosystem.
The Finance Minister responded Indian government is supporting the industry in organizing conferences on Web3 and related technologies for understanding the ecosystem and its challenges.
Thangapandian queried whether the government is undertaking any initiatives to ensure the protection of customer interests in the Virtual Digital Asset (VDA) sector.
Sitharaman replied that RBI has been cautioning users of Virtual Currencies (VCs) that dealing in VCs is associated with potential economic, financial, operational, legal, customer protection, and security-related risks.
She added that RBI also advised the entities to continue to carry out user due diligence processes in line with regulations governing standards for KYC, AML, and Combating of Financing of Terrorism (CFT), in addition to ensuring compliance with relevant provisions under Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) for overseas remittances.
Recently, Indian finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated G20 countries are working collectively to form regulations for crypto at the G20 summit this year. India’s Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth previously did state that because crypto is a class of asset that can be traded internationally, “it requires all countries” to accept the policy.
Also Read: Indian Minister Responds to Questions Regarding Blockchain and Crypto
