CBDCs vs Crypto, India’s regulatory shift towards digital fiat!
2024-10-24

The Indian government seems doubtful about cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc. Also, there is speculation that the government is seeking regulators’ and government institutions’ views on the restriction of such digital currencies. 
According to reports the claims over restriction evolved following a statement of an Indian Official to the Hindustan Times noting that “ CBDCs can do everything cryptos can do, but with more benefits and fewer risks.” 
CBDCs are defined as the digital version of the fiat currency of a nation issued by the Central Bank of that nation. These central bank currencies could likely be managed over the blockchain by the issuing authorities. 
Finance experts in India argue that the move of the government to promote CBDCs is to streamline financial services and combat crime that is usually reported in the cases of cryptocurrencies. 
As per a person aware of the matter, the government has held dozens of meetings with financial regulators and other information institutions to deeply understand the potential risks and benefits of crypto. 
It is worth noting that India is among the nations that impose huge taxes on cryptocurrencies. India Eyeing to Restrict Usage of Cryptocurrencies!
There is no official statement from the Finance Ministry of India over restriction on crypto in coming times, but there are speculations that some big is cooking behind the curtains. 
The primary reason behind regulators’ and governments’ concern is the recent incident of WazirX and surged cases related to cryptocurrencies. The popular centralized exchange in India was hacked by bad actors resulting in severe losses of over $200 million in crypto. 
It is crucial to note that India is among the nations having the least number of cryptocurrency ATMs; according to data from CoinATMradar a single machine is installed in the nation based in Nehru Place, New Delhi. 
The installed machine only facilitates buying Bitcoin, Ethereum, and others using the national currency of India. Earlier this year there were two machines, one seems to be offline for a longer time. 
The government’s concern to safeguard its residents is largely appreciated but digital currency and blockchain enthusiasts seek a favorable approach to cryptocurrencies. After the introduction of crypto, blockchain technology, and distributed ledger technology went viral, but the growth and popularity remained considerably dissatisfying as was expected. 
Nowadays many Indian banks have started using blockchains and other such technologies to boost and advance their services. On the other hand, the government of India, including other nations, has leveraged it to develop their CBDCs. Crypto Market Price Updates 
As of writing the market capitalization of the global crypto market was $2.258 trillion after growing 3.01% in the past 30 days. The total crypto market volume over the last 24 hours is $84.05 billion growing 19.10% intraday. 
At the same time, Bitcoin was exchanging hands at $67,096 adding 5.21% in a month prices are still above 20, 50, 100, and 200 days EMA (exponential moving average). In the past 24 hours, the loser list is dominated by Apecoin which lost 9.30% reaching $1.17 followed by Cardano trading at $0.349 declining 4.92%. 
The intraday gainers’ list is ruled by Safe (SAFE) trading at $1.62 adding 60.93 followed by Goatseus Maximus which grew 42.60% trading at $0.8023.  © Todayq News