By Jasmine Anand:
As India is all set to assume the presidency for the G20 Leaders' Summit for one year, from 1 December 2022 to 30 November 2023, it plans to discuss crypto regulations during its tenure with member nations, which comprise countries like France, Germany, Russia, UK, USA, China, Russia, and Canada, among others.
Before concluding her recent trip to Washington, D.C., Indian Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman revealed the government's plan for crypto regulations. She stated that crypto will be part of India's agenda during its G20 presidency and the country intends to create standard operating procedures (SOPs) for cryptocurrencies.
Further, the minister shared that India would like to bring up the topic of crypto assets for debate at the G20 summit, which would pave the way for global countries to have a technology-driven regulatory framework.
Well, this article highlights if the upcoming G20 Summit will pave the way for the crypto regulatory framework and if it will have any impact on the growing Web3 technology. Let's take a look.
What is India’s status quo on the subject?
After sitting on a draft crypto bill for numerous years, the Indian government has reportedly come into action. It is working on coming up with its stance on the legality of cryptocurrency so as to become Financial Action Task Force (FATF) compliant. Moreover, the Indian finance minister has urged the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to lead the global nations in cryptocurrency regulation, to which the IMF replied that it is ready to work in tandem with India on these new-age digital currencies.
Web3: Rapidly emerging as a future technology
Initially, skeptics, particularly Web2 platforms, mocked the growing excitement around Web3, NFTs, Metaverse, and other Web3 features, writing it off as nothing but hype. But, just two years down the line, all these features are now a part of the Web2 ecosystem, which is slowly leaning towards the Web3 world, ensuring the seamless experience and ownership opportunities it provides to its customers.
The country boasts over 450 Web3 startups in India as of the first half of the current calendar year. Sangeeta Gupta, Nasscom’s Chief Strategy Officer, speaking to the Times of India, is of the opinion that India has the potential to become one of the leading markets across the globe for Web3, owing to the growing adoption of cutting-edge technology, digital expertise, rapidly growing economy, and continuous development of a wide range of Web3 solutions like infrastructure, banking, and decentralized communities, among others.
G20 Summit: The genesis of a crypto regulatory framework?
Many experts believe that the G20 Summit could make room for crypto regulations.
Further, the academician believes that crypto itself has no basis or roots in economic realities, and it should not have any role as a currency or as a safe investment instrument. In fact, crypto is more akin to a Ponzi scheme based on convincing "greater fools" to buy into crypto. Moreover, these cryptos are widely used for gambling purposes and, at times, a means to cheat people, or perpetrate crimes anonymously. Hence, experts urge the government not to get swayed by the crypto scammers and urge policymakers to create a very strict regulatory framework to reduce the role of crypto as a speculative investment to be invested in by those who like to gamble, and nothing more than that.
The banning of cryptocurrency by other G20 nations like China, Russia, and Mexico will not affect India’s stance. The Indian government realises the dangers that come equipped with cryptos. But, at the same time, the Indian government has not gone for a complete ban. Instead, there are tax policies that discourage crypto usage, and regulations should be strong enough to render crypto only as a speculation instrument like the lottery, cites Prof. Sandeep Kumar Shukla.
Web3 is more than just crypto
As stated earlier, the finance minister has said blockchain is the way ahead and that they do not wish to stifle technological innovation. On this, CoinSwitch’s Co-founder and CEO, Ashish Singhal, opines that the Indian government does not intend to ban any transformative technology. In fact, India is a nation that has greatly benefitted from new and emerging technology, leveraging it to the benefit of the people. There cannot be Web3 without crypto.
All said and done, given the current scenario, Web3 will unquestionably create new markets, business models, and numerous other unchartered opportunities. Since blockchain is the key to Web3, and India is touted to emerge as the key player in the global Web3 landscape, the nation is all set to witness the fusion of cutting-edge technology, bringing the internet and the new-age technology to a previously unheard-of level of efficiency.