Cryptocurrencies in India – What is it like?

Looking east, we always think about Japan, South Korea and China when it comes down to cryptocurrencies. However, it is well worth noticing that other countries are now sporting rather spectacular crypto industries and it is well worth paying attention. If you are interested in knowing more about the Indian crypto trade in its current shape, now is your chance.
Following a heady 2017, market observers were both excited and full of trepidation. Will the market hold or will it come down crumbling? Many unknowns have been put forth. As of February 2018, Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley delivered his budget speech and send the cryptocurrencies down in a tailspin. More specifically, Bitcoin was affected so much that it crumbled to measly $8,800 comparing with the cryptocurrency’s previous nearly $20,000 worth.
Understandably, the plummeting in the pricing has not been just the work of unfortunate regulation. Much has occasioned the precipitous course that Bitcoin has taken, but no-one is quite sure what. After all, when Bitcoin reached $19,343 in December, news had come only two months before that China is effectively banning ICOs and all related activity.
Nevertheless, the cryptocurrency has managed to climb a previously impossible summit. In the speech India’s Finance Minister held in February, Mr Jaitley trod carefully. He did not spoke of cryptocurrencies in the extremity, which coincided with the general discourse about cryptocurrencies around the world.
Around that time, the Bank of England had made its announcement regarding the future of cryptocurrencies, saying that overreliance on it would be a bad thing, and stressing the importance of regulating tokens and uprooting all illegal activities related to it.
Meanwhile in India, one thing became abundantly clear. The government was against cryptocurrencies, which explains the current tepid climate.
The Indian Finance Minister stated in his speech that cryptocurrencies are not a legal tender and chimed in with the warnings preferred by both the Reserve Bank of India RBI and the Ministry of Finance that cryptocurrencies need be treated with absolute caution and even scepticism.
Many governments do not recognise cryptocurrencies as a legal way of exchange. France and Austria treat them as gold derivatives which levies them with pricey tags, and that in turn does not sit well with investors who are expecting to turn riches over night.
One particular thing has dealt the heaviest blow to India’s cryptocurrencies and that is the ‘payment system’. In other words, the RBI may soon be taxing cryptocurrencies and their owners.
In all fairness, we are largely pro this move, as all assets should be levied with a fair tax, which better reflects the social and economical status of business individuals and companies.
However, people have been investing in cryptocurrencies in the hopes that they would instead not need to commit tax money and stay largely under the radar. This assumptions has proven rather erroneous from head to toe.
Regulators may not tax back sums that have managed to slip through their fingers, at least in the United Stats with the IRS taking an uncharacteristically lenient approach, but elsewhere no such guarantees exist.
In other words, if you are a crypto owner in India, you may expect things to become rather complicated if you have been planning not to pay taxes for your crypto gold. Conversely, countries have continued to embrace blockchain technology. Take for example Switzerland which has been a strong proponent of the tech as it would offer new ways of banking all over the world.
QTUM, a cryptocurrency that is slowly gaining popularity around the globe is promising to be the next big thing around the world, as it combines smart protocols with the solidity of the blockchain technology.
Many alternatives will appear for countries to launch their legal Initial Coin Offerings, QTUM perhaps being one of the best examples of this trend. In the meanwhile, people will also be asked to be prepared to meet tougher regulation.
However, tougher does not mean unfair. In a world where we have come to expect that everything will be done for us on a whim, it is natural that taxation will appear unfair. However, it is all part of the regulatory framework, which needs to be established so that the future of crypto currencies is more pronounced and certain.
Whatever may happen to current taxation, cryptocurrencies have shown that the world can be reunited around a single cryptocurrencies, in the case of Bitcoin. It is up to initiatives such as QTUM and countries, including India, to figure out a way to implement them en masse.