Government’s stance on crypto assets is not linked to other uses of the technology, assures Somanathan
Government’s stance on crypto assets is not linked to other uses of the technology, assures Somanathan
special correspondent
The government has no intention of banning the use of blockchain technologies for functions other than payments and the creation of crypto assets, a top finance ministry official said on Monday, fueling fears of industry players over the Centre’s vague stance on legitimacy. stemmed from. of crypto assets.
“I want to make it clear that the government’s policy towards blockchain has nothing to do with its policy on crypto assets,” said Finance Secretary TV Somanathan in a post-Budget conversation in Mumbai. There is no apprehension about any person doing it, which has nothing to do with payment or currency.
He was responding to concerns expressed about the government’s regulatory approach to crypto assets in general extending to the deployment of blockchain technologies.
“Government, Coffee Board under the Ministry of Commerce has taken an initiative – to use blockchain system to identify specific varieties of coffee from specific regions so that they get higher price when sold in export markets as it has proof of origin So the government has nothing against blockchain technology and there is no connection between the two…,” Mr. Somanathan said.
Acknowledging that blockchain is an important technology, the finance secretary explained that the budget refers to a central bank digital currency that will be based on a version of blockchain technology.
“This [the concern] There is about a particular use case in the field of so-called crypto or virtual digital assets. The government is not discouraging blockchain technology in any way,” he concluded.