WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty has spoken to Crypto Analyst @APompliano and demystified the crypto ban hype in India. According to him, the committee that proposed the draft bill to ban crypto no longer exists. Its head was transferred to another department.
Furthermore, he emphasizes that currently there is just one major roadblock in the adoption of cryptocurrency. Particularly, the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) guidelines. These put some prohibition on the central banks while dealing with crypto startups. Thus, banks cannot hold accounts of crypto startups where they accept fiat from the users. Currently, that is the biggest problem.
Everything else is just a rumor. In fact, RBI treats any crypto startup as a “software company.” This allows banks to hold the companies salary and vendor payment accounts that require fiat transactions.
Millions of Indian’s understand cryptocurrency
As per the WazirX database, close to 5-10 million Indians in the age range of 18-25 years understand crypto pretty well. Therefore, India is ripe for mass adoption because of multiple reasons:
- Indians are in need of access to capital without geographic boundaries. Currently, Indians pay 10-15% interest on bank loans. While citizens in countries like Japan and the US — only 2-3 %. With cryptocurrency adoption, Indians will have better access to global capital.
- Unbanked Indians living in villages have access to smartphones and the internet. Crypto is, therefore, more accessible than banks.
Nascent stage
As revealed by Nischal, in India crypto is still in its infancy. The optimism is high but people are awaiting the right infrastructure and, currently, they are just accumulating crypto. At the same time, crypto lending is doing extremely well. Indian hodlers lend their assets at 5-10% rates.
What does the future hold?
According to Nischal, the Indian Government needs to set up a working committee to make a decision about cryptocurrency. And unlike the first time, the committee must have a representative from the crypto industry who understands the space. This will be a big success for the Indian crypto playground.
Why WazirX and Binance?
He explains that WazirX still stands as an independent entity. At the same time, it partnered with Binance as the Malta-based exchange has more experience dealing with regulatory obstacles both offline and online.
Another big reason is the capital support WazirX will receive from Binance. Right now Nischal wants to focus more on massive Indian user base ramp up rather than seeking funds.
China, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia -> some of the prominent asian countries where governments are testing the regulatory waters for Crypto Blockchain.
Great times ahead especially in Asia. When India? #IndiaWantsCrypto #bitcoin https://t.co/jNFZ80r4r2
— Nischal (WazirX) ⚡️ (@NischalShetty) November 25, 2019
Earlier, this month we covered that the Indian government delayed the introduction of a bill against cryptocurrency.