Crypto Investors Remain Positive Despite A 30% Tax Rate On Profits And The Pending Bill

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Investors welcome tax on cryptocurrency profits

Indian crypto investors have welcomed the government's decision to tax profits from digital assets' transactions, even as the tax rate is a steep 30 per cent, underscoring hopes the pending crypto bill will regulate the market rather than ban private coins completely. 

The Reserve Bank of India favours a complete ban on cryptocurrencies. It has made that explicit in repeated messages highlighting concerns relating to macroeconomic and financial stability from virtual currencies, the challenge of exchange management, monitoring and regulating such assets.  

Still, the government and a few members of RBI's central board have sought a more nuanced view on digital assets, keeping in mind the technological developments.  

Investors, top cryptocurrency exchanges currently operating in India, and industry experts, too, opine that reforms to the pending crypto legislation with more comprehensive consultations can take India to the forefront of blockchain technology.  

They also have welcomed the government's plans to regulate the crypto market and formally help develop underlying technologies. 

"Crypto is financial innovation. Provided a reasonable regulatory framework, crypto legislation should boost investors' confidence. The ease in transactions can strengthen entrepreneurial confidence and catalyse trade and investment," said Ms. Lekha Chakraborty, Professor at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, New Delhi.

"My hunch is the new crypto bill will focus on the regulatory framework rather than a blanket ban," she added.  

The proposed bill on the Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency, in its current form, suggests a complete ban on all private coins as