The Block
Quick Take
- Nirmala Sitharaman said the G20 is exploring whether it can coordinate on crypto regulation.
- “We are talking to all nations, that if it requires regulation, then one country alone cannot do anything,” India’s finance minister said.
Nirmala Sitharaman, finance minister of current G20 president India, said the group of major economies is exploring whether it can coordinate on crypto regulation.
Sitharaman — whose government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and central bank have long debated laws potentially banning cryptocurrencies — cited the sophisticated technology underpinning virtual assets as requiring discussion on regulatory actions, Reuters reported. “We are talking to all nations, that if it requires regulation, then one country alone cannot do anything,” Sitharaman said.
“We are talking with all nations, if we can make some standard operating procedure which is followed by everyone to make a regulatory framework, and if it can be effective,” Sitharaman added.
Though the Indian government and the Reserve Bank of India have historically been opposed to decentralized cryptocurrencies, the central bank has shown a keen interest in central bank digital currencies. Late last year, it began a pilot for a wholesale digital rupee to reduce transaction costs and the need for collateral when trading government securities.