Law, policy and other developments in 2022 relating to the Web3 sector in India. International International call for robust regulation and supervision of crypto assets: The Financial Stability Board (FSB) of which India is a member issued a statement amid the recent volatility in the crypto market, stressing the need for robust regulation and supervisionRead more
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A post-mortem on the crypto-collapse being described as worse than Enron. If you doubted FTX some months back, many tweeps would accuse you of spreading FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt). After all, it was the third largest crypto exchange (by volume) and was valued north of $30 billion. Its founder, now infamous SBF, was then rescuing troubled crypto firms, drawing comparisons with the banking bigwig, JP Morgan. SBF was also among theRead more
A conversation between Akbar and Birbal about crypto-assets. And an explainer of why crypto-taxes are hassleocracy at its best. “Cryptos have no underlying assets, not even a tulip.” –Shaktikanta Das Ouch. That’s the RBI Governor, not mincing his words. Like everyone else, we’ve pored over the Budget announcements on crypto-assets. The euphoria in the crypto-verseRead more
This post covers four key policy and regulatory developments of 2022 concerning blockchain from the EU, USA, Singapore and Hong Kong. Europe & European Union (EU) Regulation (EU) 2022/858 – Distributed Ledger Technology Regulation (DLTR)[1] On May 30, 2022, The European Parliament passed the Regulation (EU) 2022/858 (“DLTR”) to establish and regulate a temporary pilotRead more
This article explains what are privacy coins, key regulatory concerns, and how these can be addressed. Blockchain is gaining popularity, but it has a privacy problem. Vitalik Buterin, the founder of Ethereum, summarizes the concern: “As seductive as a blockchain’s other advantages are, neither companies nor individuals are particularly keen on publishing all of theirRead more
As we get more clarity with a definition of cryptocurrencies and digital assets, it might cause headaches to another burgeoning industry in India – online video games. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s announcement in the 2022 Union Budget of proposing a 30% tax on digital assets and cryptocurrencies has brought a flurry of reactions. Proponents ofRead more
As the year ends and the holiday cheer begins, we bring a round-up of the discussion this year around crypto regulation in India. Despite expectations, the government has not introduced any regulations on cryptocurrency in the winter session of Parliament. This has left the crypto industry in a state of flux, with the lack ofRead more
NFTs are everywhere – from Amitabh Bachchan to the NBA. While India is deliberating a new law to regulate cryptocurrencies (and possibly NFTs), it is only fair to ask – one law to rule them all? NFTs have been at the centre of everyone’s attention ever since the much talked about sale of Beeple’s “EverydaysRead more
A starfish is an organism without a head. So is a DAO. We dive into the regulation of decentralised autonomous organisations, including the recently enacted DAO law in Wyoming. A starfish is an organism without a head. So is a DAO. We’re not saying a DAO is a starfish. Okay, we’ll begin again. A new law[i] came intoRead more
The post is an overview of our comments to the National Health Authority’s consultation papers on a proposed building block of the National Digital Health Mission, namely the unified health interface. The consultation papers sought comments on the design and governance for creating and sustaining the unified health interface . Background: In August 2020, PrimeRead more