IMF: India’s Crypto Regulation Efforts Benefit IMF and US G20 Support
India has said it wants a collective global effort to address the challenges posed by cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ministry of Finance said he had held a workshop for G20 member states to discuss how to develop a common structure.
Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Bangalore, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said it was “extremely important” to create a strong regulatory framework, but added that the United States had not proposed any outright bans.
“We did not propose a complete ban on crypto activities, but it is very important to create a strong regulatory framework,” Yellen said. “We are working with other governments.”
Previously, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told reporters after co-chairing a meeting with Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman that banning cryptocurrencies should be an option.
The government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been discussing the development of a law to regulate or even ban cryptocurrencies for several years, but has not made a final decision. Reserve Bank of India said that cryptocurrencies should be banned as they are akin to a Ponzi scheme.
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On Thursday, the IMF laid out a nine-point action plan for how countries should handle crypto assets, with point number one calling for no legal tender status for cryptocurrencies. Such efforts have become a priority for the authorities following the collapse of a number of cryptocurrency exchanges and assets over the past couple of years, the fund said, adding that doing nothing now is “not practical.”