India's Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, has stated that the country is not against blockchain technology, but currencies must be monitored by the government or the central bank. The Reserve Bank of India has launched pilot trials for retail and wholesale central bank digital currencies, with the digital rupee aiming to improve cross-border and bulk payments to minimize losses on arbitrage. India is seeking a global consensus in regulating crypto assets and is also introducing cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence topics in certain school curriculums from the next academic year. Last year, the country imposed a 30% flat tax on crypto income and a 1% tax deducted at source on crypto trades above 10,000 Indian rupees. India currently holds the presidency of the Group of 20 and has listed cryptocurrency and its regulation as one of the agendas for discussion.

(By PRADIPTA MUKHERJEE)