Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday that discussions are on with the Reserve Bank regarding private cryptocurrencies and central bank-backed digital currency and a decision will be taken after due consultations.
Sitharaman had announced in her budget speech on February 1 that the Digital Rupee or Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) would be issued by the RBI in the coming financial year. He had also announced that the government would levy 30 per cent tax on gains from any other private digital asset from April 1.
“On crypto, I have said that we are in the process of consultation. Whatever decision the government is going to take, it will be after consultation,” she said.
Responding to questions after addressing the RBI’s central board of directors here on Monday, Sitharaman said the central banks and the government are on the verge of cryptocurrencies.
“I think over the years, you must have noticed that there is complete harmony that we are dealing with, respecting each other’s domains while also knowing what we have to do with each other, you Know, priorities and in the interest of the nation, said the minister, who is scheduled to address the board of capital markets regulator SEBI on Tuesday.
He said that discussions with RBI regarding CBDC were going on before the budget announcement and they are continuing.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said like many other issues, this particular matter is under discussion internally between the RBI and the government.
“Whatever issues we have, we discuss with the government,” he said.
A CBDC is a digital or virtual currency, but it cannot be compared to a private virtual currency or cryptocurrency, which has grown over the past decade. Private virtual currencies do not represent the debts or liabilities of any individual as there is no issuer.
Last week, Das had said that the central bank does not want to rush and is carefully examining all aspects before introducing a CBDC.
The Trend and Progress of Banking in India report released by RBI in December last year said that given the dynamic impact of CBDCs on macroeconomic policy making, it is necessary to initially adopt and comprehensively test the basic model so that it has minimal impact. Ho. On monetary policy and the banking system.
India’s progress in payment systems will provide a useful backbone for providing a state-of-the-art CBDC to its citizens and financial institutions, it had said.
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