Jaitley Puts an End To Cryptocurrency Celebrations in India

Union budget 2018, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley apparently put an end to the road of cryptocurrencies in India.
By Achal Arya
Updated October 4, 2024

With the presentation of 2018’s Budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley put an end to the cryptocurrency issue by discouraging its usage. However, Jaitley favoured Blockchain technology and mentioned the government will adopt it. Reports have suggested that ROC has stopped registering such companies and several banks have frozen these accounts.

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Jaitley crushed any hopes of Cryptocurrency party

In today’s budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley apparently put an end to the road of cryptocurrencies in India. In a move to regulate the cryptocurrency, Jaitley stated that the government will do everything to discontinue the use of bitcoin among other cryptocurrencies in India.

He repeated his previous words that India does not recognise cryptocurrencies as a legal tender and would discourage its use. But he commented that they would definitely encourage the use of blockchain technology in payment systems.

Jaitley has been quoted as saying:

“The government does not recognise cryptocurrency as legal tender or coin and will take all measures to eliminate the use of these crypto assets in financing illegitimate activities or as part of the payment system.”

With the increasing rage of Bitcoin over the globe, over the past few months, it has been expected that the government would provide a better clarity on cryptocurrencies with the budget presentation for 2018. With the budget announcement coming up, there have been talks that the government might be coming up with a roadmap to regulate cryptocurrency market.

After months of speculation over the fate of cryptocurrencies in India that has a huge base of bitcoin investors and traders, the declaration came this morning.

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Indian government’s doubtful interest in cryptocurrencies

For the last few months, both Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the government have expressed discomfort over the use of cryptocurrencies. The Finance Minister even called them a Ponzi scheme last year.

The ministry has said:

“There is a real and heightened risk of investment bubble of the type seen in Ponzi schemes which can result in sudden and prolonged crash exposing investors, especially retail consumers losing their hard-earned money. Consumers need to be alert and extremely cautious to avoid getting trapped in such Ponzi schemes.”

The Modi government had also announced the setup of a committee to the virtual currencies’ implications and examine the regulations surrounding them around the world.

However, Jaitley’s stance on cryptocurrencies today has put the rest over any positive expectations and doubts on government’s approach.

The government has already started a crackdown on the illegal use of cryptocurrencies. But Jaitley has announced the adoption of blockchain by the government.

What do you think of Jaitley’s stomping move over cryptocurrencies and favorability towards blockchain? Let us know your thoughts in our comment section below! 

The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.


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Achal Arya
Achal Arya is a digital product designer and an entrepreneur. He did his masters degree in design from IIT Hyderabad and has a bachelors degree in Computer Science. He works in the Web3 domain and manages new developments at CoinGape. Follow him on X at @arya_achal or reach him at achal[at]coingape.com.
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