Garrick Hileman, Blockchain.com’s head of research, shared today in an interview that Indian banks are showing interest in cryptocurrencies but are also sceptical about going further into this space due to regulatory uncertainty.
Hileman also indicated, that for the same reason Blockchain.com still does not have a payment gateway in India. Yet, he added, this is a target for the company.
The CEO of WazirX, an Indian cryptocurrency exchange, Nischal Shetty also highlighted last week during a webinar on Indian regulations that Indian banks are interested in getting involved in the blockchain and crypto-currency room. He said the banks that approached WazirX to seek advice seemed primarily inclined to explore the use case of the technology in international transactions.
Indian Blockchain Ecosystem
India has seen several blockchain and crypto companies going bust in the past two years due to the lack of consistent legislation and funding for banking. Nevertheless, the decision of the Supreme Court to lift the financial banking ban set out by India’s Reserve Bank has had a positive effect on the country’s crypto market.
Speaking the same thing, Hileman said that while some progress has been made since the decision, other regulatory bodies still don’t want crypto as part of the Indian financial marketplace.
If those bodies embrace cryptocurrencies and bring supporting regulations, India will “see business proliferation, banking relationships, business activity, investment growth,” he said.
According to Hileman, Indian regulators’ current stance threatens India’s development in this fast-growing sector, and “India risks falling behind other tech hubs that take a more optimistic view of the multiple benefits of innovation in cryptocurrency.”
Several Government Officials Dislike Crypto
India continues to have hardline anti-crypto officials. India’s former finance minister, Subhash Chandra Garg, has previously proposed the concept of the outright prohibition of cryptocurrencies.
Garg said in a recent webinar with industry experts that the ban will prohibit cryptocurrencies only insofar as they functioned as currencies. They will still be available for trade and investment, just like goods, but would be closely governed.
