Key Takeaways
- Coinbase had to disable UPI transactions in India because of pressure from the RBI.
- The country is also imposing taxes on digital assets which are obstructing the growth of the Indian crypto market.
The Indian government is yet to decide the status of digital assets in the country. This year, the regulators have already imposed a 30% tax on crypto gains and are yet to decide if they should levy a 28% GST as well.
Last month, the cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase, stopped accepting payments via UPI (United Payments Interface) from its Indian customers. The exchange announced that UPI would be its payment mechanism, which the National Payment Council of India denied being aware of.
Though there is no ban on digital currencies in the country, its hesitation to provide full acceptance is unavoidable. On Tuesday, during the first-quarter earnings call, the CEO of Coinbase, Brian Armstrong said that soon after launching its operations in India, the exchange had to disable the UPI option as there was some “informal pressure from the Reserve Bank of India.”
He explained that there are a few parts of the government and the central bank that don’t agree with cryptocurrencies which are obstructing Indian operations. “India is a unique market in the sense that the Supreme Court ruled that they can’t ban crypto but there are elements in the government there, including at the RBI, who don’t seem to be as positive on it,” said the CEO.
