The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency
Bill, 2021, will be introduced in the next session of the
Parliament this year beginning November 29. As per the Lok Sabha
bulletin, the bill "seeks to prohibit all private
cryptocurrencies in India" but allows for
"certain exceptions to promote the underlying
technology and its uses".
The Reserve Bank of India has been voicing its serious concerns
on cryptocurrencies since 2017. In July 2017, the then RBI Governor
informed a parliamentary panel that the central bank was keeping a
close watch on transactions involving cryptocurrencies and on April
6, 2018, RBI by way of circular prohibited banks and entities
regulated by it from providing services in relation to virtual
currencies. However, on March 4, 2021, the Supreme Court of India
had set aside the circular.