Crypto Fights for Freedom in India's Supreme Court, Critics Cite Risk

Publicado en by Cointele | Publicado en

Following the session that took place last August, a three-judge panel from India's Supreme Court reconvened once again this week to discuss the much-hyped Crypto v. RBI case.

During the last hearing, the Supreme Court had asked the Reserve Bank of India to clarify its position as to why exactly it enforced a nationwide banking ban on the country's crypto market, as well as to discuss the seemingly unconstitutional nature of its aforementioned move.

Ever since the RBI decided to go ahead and issue its controversial prohibition order, a number of public and industry-led petitions have been filed by prominent members of the Indian crypto community contending that the RBI's decision was not only unjust but also in clear violation of the law.

As part of its defense scheme, the RBI alluded to incidents, such as the Binance KYC breach of 2019, as being clear examples of why the crypto industry at large is still in its infancy, and thus, poses a massive cybersecurity threat to the economy of any nation where it is allowed to foster and grow.

Lastly, Kashif Raza, founder of Crypto Kanoon, an Indian crypto news platform that has been covering the ongoing hearing live via its Twitter channel, told Cointelegraph that the main goal of IAMAI's legal counsel is to establish the fact that the Indian crypto community is not trying to push digital assets as being currencies but rather as alternative investment options.

To elaborate on the subject, Varun Sethi, CEO of Blockchain Lawyer, told Cointelegraph that "The RBI's argument that crypto's anonymous nature poses a threat to national security cannot be totally ruled out." He added that crypto can freely flow between international borders, while the cybersecurity risks are hard to deny.

Some key concerns put forth by the Supreme CourtEven though the Supreme Court seems to be finally understanding the potential that crypto and blockchain technologies possess in regards to transforming a multitude of local industrial domains, it did express concerns regarding the use of digital assets for money laundering and tax evasion purposes.

Lastly, a World Bank report regarding mining-based electricity consumption was also read in court to highlight the potential negative impact of the crypto industry on India's power sector.

Supreme Court grills the RBIAs aforementioned, the RBI has claimed that the reason it restricted crypto activities in India was because of a lack of clear regulations, especially in regards to things like financial anonymity, money laundering, etc.

In the opinion of the judges, it was the responsibility of the RBI - and not the local crypto exchanges - to devise a regulatory system that incorporates crypto into India's general financial framework.

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