MoS Rajeev Chandrasekhar addressing the Itech Law International Conference 2023 in Bengaluru today.
Bengaluru: There is no issue with crypto unless all laws and rules of the land were followed, the Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, said here today.
“Nothing today outlaws crypto as long as you follow the legal process. If you want to invest in crypto, make sure you go through the RBI, get your LRS eligibility, the dollars as per rules,” the Minister said.
The statement assumes significance since the Cryptocurrency Bill, which was scheduled in the year 2021, has got delayed. The question on it was raised during the last winter session of Parliament too on the current status of the Bill and when will it be tabled. The Minister of State Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, on behalf of the Ministry of Finance, had told the Parliament that “Crypto assets are by definition borderless and require international collaboration to prevent regulatory arbitrage. Therefore, any legislation on the subject can be effective only with significant international collaboration on evaluation of the risks and benefits and evolution of common taxonomy and standards.” He made it clear that currently, policy related to crypto assets and related ecosystem is with the Ministry of Finance.
Chandrashekhar today said while addressing the Itech Law International Conference 2023, that the Government was working on a comprehensive legal framework that will include legislations like the proposed Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, the National Data Governance Framework, and the amended IT rules, and the upcoming Digital India Act — “which will be less prescriptive and more principle-based-to enable and support a vibrant startup and innovation ecosystem”.
Stating that the Government has always held stakeholders’ views as necessary, the Minister said, “The efficacy, implementation and acceptance of any bill or legislation are as good as how many minds come together to help in its draft. Our effort has been to involve as many stakeholders as possible in the process of law-making. It is the government’s legislation as much as it’s the stakeholders’ legislation.”
The Minister then visited the NXP office in Bengaluru and met their leadership. (NXP Bengaluru is a hub of innovation for NXP’s [or next experience] connectivity, security, and advanced analogue and radio frequency products with the automotive and IoT [Internet of Things] markets as key drivers). He also interacted with the startups and entrepreneurs that are being mentored by them. They shared details about their projects with the Minister and showed keen interest in the Government of India’s Design Linked Incentive Scheme.
– global bihari bureau
