Since the birth of Bitcoin, Indians have maintained a grey and calm stance on the adoption of cryptocurrencies. For the Indian cryptocurrency community, this seems to be another blow. One of the largest financial services institutions, ICICI Bank, has warned users not to use their remittance services to transfer any form of cryptocurrency or digital currency.
In the latest version of ICICI’s retail remittance application form, The bank has made it clear that it intends to prevent users from using the service for encrypted transfers. According to the Foreign Exchange Administration Act of 1999 (FEMA), the statement stated:
“The above remittance is not for investment/purchase of Bitcoin/cryptocurrency/virtual currency (such as Ethereum (Ethereum), ripple (Ripple), Litecoin (LTC), Dash, Peercoin, Dogecoin, Primecoin, Chinacoin, Ven, Bitcoin (Bitcoin) Or any other virtual currency/cryptocurrency/bitcoin). “
The major banking institution also shared two other points to reiterate its anti-adoption stance, further warning users not to use its remittance service to invest in companies that handle Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency and virtual currency.
Users are also warned not to send any funds that may have been obtained through crypto investments in the past. However, the Indian government has not yet shown resistance to blockchain-based financial applications.
Since the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the ban on banks that do business with crypto-related companies in April 2018, ICICI’s use of FEMA 1999 to oppose crypto adoption is consistent with other banks in the country.
Contrary to ICICI’s latest move to ignore crypto enthusiasts, the Supreme Court of India Contradicts the ban of the Reserve Bank of India In a crypto-friendly bank. Due to this confusion, Indian crypto investors continue to look for loopholes in the system to increase their crypto portfolio.
Although government officials continue to postpone the inevitable date, the apparent lack of regulatory clarity on crypto investment directly affects investors and the country’s financial technology innovation.
On the other hand, WazirX, owned by Binance, India’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, continues to see growth in transaction volumes and new users, as the Reserve Bank of India clarified the lifting of the ban in accordance with the Supreme Court’s ruling.
