Bitcoin Adoption in India & its Challenges

An Overview

The Supreme Court lifted the ban on financial institutions like banks offering services to businesses for managing crypto assets in March 2020. RBI Reserve Bank of India imposed the ban in July of 2018. Some challenges need to be taken care of before people can accept cryptocurrency widely. As per CoinDCX’s survey of roughly 11000 respondents, the youth from 25 to 30 years feels that the crypto-market has challenges, and it is not easy to enter this market. As the value of Bitcoin is increasing, several people/investors started trading or investing on Bitcoin. If you are also planning to trade in Bitcoin, the Bitcoin Code is an automated trading platform which uses AI & smart trading robots. To know more about how it works, their features & services, you can check  & learn from Bitcoin Code Reviews. But, if you are planning to invest or trade Bitcoin in India, here are certain points you need to know before investing.

Is Bitcoin Legal in India?

India is home to seventeen percent of the world population but harbors only one percent of the crypto world. The regulation is a noteworthy aspect that is holding the crypto investors and traders back. In India, there is a lag in regulatory and legal clarity that discourages crypto endeavors. Not only does the earning bracket of people below five lakh per year feel that the crypto markets lack any viable options but so does the income bracket above ten lakhs think similarly. Both the income brackets portrayed concerns about the regulatory and legal clarity aspects for the crypto investments. People belonging to other categories like students, bank employees, people above 40 also felt that regulations might be a concern. The Co-founder and CEO of CoinDCX, Sumit Gupta, feels that India needs to have reliable and smart regulations that can leverage India’s needs outwardly.

Why Does India Need Bitcoin and Other Cryptos?

Even though the crypto companies complain that banks do not cooperate; still the digital currency segment has been growing in the last few quarters. Cryptocurrencies have been under examination since they began. Bitcoin has seen significant growth in a short span in India, crossing the fourteen lakhs mark.

The key asset categories witnessed inconsistency during the pandemic as external factors played a big role, including geographic, market, demographic and economic. But Bitcoin remains unaffected as the above does not come into play as it is a matter of supply and demand. Bitcoin stands on blockchain technology, which is the most secure source of digital currency. People in India gifted and bought Bitcoin and Ethereum on Diwali and Dhanteras last year. As per the survey, about twelve percent claimed having owned crypto assets, and more than twenty percent agreed that virtual currencies are a strong probability as an investment. It only points towards the growth of the virtual sector in India. The mobile and internet associations are working out with the government to facilitate cryptocurrency trading to become legal in India. The code of conduct draft is almost ready for the traders in the crypto world, including the KYC and the amendments to avoid money laundering. Financial sector biggies like PayPal and Mastercard have opened up to cryptocurrencies. What we need at the moment is constructive regulation to maintain a viable ecosystem to initiate more startups that will work with blockchain, generate more jobs, and tax revenue for the government. Many countries have legalized crypto gambling to generate income during a despairing time with the pandemic and get the economies moving. Crypto Kanoon’s CEO Kashif Raza says that India needs a workable ecosystem to cover the gap between the cryptocurrency community and people who want to join it.

Is India Ready to Adopt Bitcoin?

Other challenges are stopping India from adopting Bitcoin. The biggest challenge being education and knowledge. The current leaders of the industry are not investing in educating the masses on different cryptocurrencies. There have to be clear-cut guidelines to help investors. The governing authorities and controlling agencies need to work cohesively and treat it like a business sector with full transparency. Cryptocurrency is raw to cyberattacks, which have cost millions of dollars to people. Though exchanges are taking more and more measures to keep the funds secure and not let the crypto-assets become vulnerable to ransomware, people are still skeptical about investing in them. The only solution is if insurance companies step in to offer insurance for the wallets. It will invite standardization and inquiry and affirm people to invest, as per Advocate PM Mishra.

Conclusion

Even though the Supreme court lifted off the ban on banks for serving businesses on crypto assets, imposed by RBI in 2018, cryptocurrencies have not been welcomed in India with open arms due to many reasons. One, the safety concerns; two, most people are unaware; nor are the leaders investing in educating the masses. The thefts in the past have made people vary. Despite the provisions that exchanges have made, people are still holding back. The good news is that the code of conduct, KYC, and ways to avoid money laundering are under completion between the mobile and internet associations and the government to legalize ­­­­­­­­crypto trading. Many countries have allowed crypto-gambling to generate income for the government. If insurance companies were to step in to secure the crypto wallets, people would feel safer investing in crypto assets.