Government officials in India and Nigeria today issued a statement on cryptocurrency, taking a surprisingly different direction. Both clearly acknowledge both pros and cons, but there are many important differences in their speech.
While mentioning the CBDC, the Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry focused on the downsides of Web3. Meanwhile, Nigeria has established a committee to be beneficially involved in this risky but profitable industry.
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India’s cryptocurrency outlook
As the Web3 industry continues to grow, jurisdictions around the world are being forced to tackle the issue of cryptocurrency regulation.
Today, in two major regional economies, Nigeria and India, both government officials issued statements regarding cryptocurrency regulations, but they have gone in two different directions.
India’s Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal made several remarks during trade negotiations in Qatar’s capital Doha. He argued that India is not encouraging the cryptocurrency industry and is leviing “very heavy” taxes on users.
Apparently he hinted at launching an Indian CBDC instead.
“India has also announced that it will issue a digital currency backed by the Reserve Bank of India guarantee. We do not recommend (cryptocurrency) because we don’t want anyone to get stuck with no one in the backend (tokens) that are backed by anyone,” Goyal argued.
It’s a bit unclear what he meant this. Strictly speaking, India already owns its own cryptocurrency and has launched the digital rupee in 2022. However, the CBDC has been criticized for lacking popularity, with a total circulation of $114.5 million in three years.
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This may seem impressive, but not for a country with a population of over 1 billion. To put this into perspective, India is a regional leader in the introduction of cryptocurrency, with on-chain trading exceeding $300 billion last year. Compared to this, $100 million is not a big deal.
Maybe Goyal is hinting at the return of the digital rupee or is announcing a new project. In any case, his statements seemed openly hostile.
Optimistic perspective
Meanwhile, Nigeria is used to prominent cryptocurrency scams, but the country still appears to be interested in friendly regulations. Nigeria’s House Speaker Abbas Tajdeen recently launched a committee on cryptocurrency.
Despite mentioning concerns about criminal conduct, he also mentioned the industry’s economic benefits.
“We are tasked with a nationally important task of examining the economic, regulatory and security impact of cryptocurrencies. Around the world, technology restructures financial systems. In Nigeria, cryptocurrency and point-of-sale operations are growing rapidly, creating new opportunities for commercial, financial inclusion and innovation,” Tajdine said.
In other words, Tajdine acknowledged the risks, but also focused on the benefits cryptocurrency has brought to Nigeria. So far, his country’s cryptocurrency industry has not been as developed as India, but active involvement could change this paradigm.
This “low-and-busive” view may prove more beneficial than reluctantly taking part.
It shows that success in the Web3 industry requires a lot of effort. If government representatives of India and Nigeria have a say in policy implementation, it will be interesting to see how both countries evolve in the crypto sector.
