India’s authorities allow for a possibility of creating its own cryptocurrency that may be issued by the Reserve Bank of India.
The RBI formed a committee in order to find out whether it is possible to use cryptocurrencies as a legal means of payment.
RBI’s Governor Sudarshan Sen stated that Bitcoin is not considered as the national cryptocurrency as it raises some concerns, bearing in mind that it is used for money laundering and sponsoring terrorist attacks.
Along with that, the Indian companies, that use bitcoins for settlements, reported about an increase in the number of new clients. After demonetization, initiated by Narendra Modi in November 2016, more people began to use cryptocurrencies. Currently, there are about 600 thousand users.
Cryptocurrency exchanges of India observe safety regulations, including verification of identity documents. Some companies even apply voice identification and require bank statements.
According to Sudarshan Sen, the central bank may approve the cryptocurrencies as soon as it starts to issue its own digital currency that will be used in the cyber-domain and will have no equal in the real world.
Speaking about non-fiat cryptocurrencies, the central bank is also not comfortable with them.
Some experts say that if the Indian government decides to introduce its own cryptocurrency, it will have to change some of its laws including the currency law. Reportedly, the new digital money may be named after the goddess of prosperity Lakshmi.
