Similar to many other Asian countries, India has seen a rise in the use of digital currencies. But the reception from its government has not been the most favorable. However, there are new developments that are giving the Indian Cryptocurrency ecosystem good reasons to believe that most of the restrictions against the use of digital currencies might be lifted. This is as a result of the comments recently made by the country’s Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was a spokesperson at the India Idea Submit, which was hosted by the U.S Indian business council Yesterday, gave a keynote speech in which he advocated for different digital technologies including Blockchain technology. The Prime ministers categorized 5G, Big Data Analytics, Quantum Computing, the internet of things, and Blockchain as frontier technologies.
PM calls for U.S investment partnerships amidst its economical crisis
Apparently, the Prime Minister has spotted an investment opportunity in these emerging technologies and is welcoming investors, especially from the United States, with open arms.
It is obvious that the coronavirus pandemic has severely affected the country’s economy and the Prime Minister hopes to revive this with international Investment partnerships from other promising countries, especially the United States.
To this effect, The prime minister urged U.S based investors to see the struggling economy as a promising one, where technological investments can be profitable to both the investor and the residents of India. Notwithstanding, the Prime Minister hinted at long-term India-US cooperation that could nurture the relationship into a post-pandemic world. However, the Prime Minister is urging investors to key in as soon as possible.
Part of his keyword speech reads;
“American investors often look out for the perfect timing to enter a sector or a country. To them, I would like to say — there has never been a better time to invest in India.”
Indian media outlet calls for the implementation of Public Blockchains
Responding to the Prime Minister’s speech was an Indian media outlet, whose comments are centered around the importance of establishing an actual regulatory guideline for Blockchain usage.
The media outlet calls for the imitation of the footsteps of China, where six public Blockchains backed by the State have already been put in place. The outlet went on to say that it was “important that we embrace public Blockchains, and bring clear regulations around the whole subject.”
Conclusion
The future of digital currencies in India is still very blurry. Like most countries, India is accepting of Blockchain but still very skeptical about cryptocurrencies.
Even after the country’s Reverse bank removed the Anti-Crypto ban in March, some banks are still reluctant to accept crypto-related businesses. But with the Prime Minister speaking on Blockchain in a positive light, cryptocurrencies may still have a chance to fully break into India.