Indian Finance
Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said that the government does not have
plans to recognise Bitcoin as currency. Sitharaman made the statement at the
first sitting of the winter session of Parliament, the same day when the three
contentious farm laws were repealed. The finance minister was asked if India
had any plans to recognise Bitcoin as currency to which she said, “No, sir”.

Also Read | Winter session of Parliament begins today: All you need to know

Sitharaman further
said that the government does not collect data on Bitcoin transactions. The
Indian finance minister’s statement is significant because the Centre is
scheduled to table a bill in Parliament in this very session titled The
Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill 2021.

The Bill seeks to
impose a ban on all cryptocurrency and introduce a national digital currency
which will be released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Some
cryptocurrencies may remain legal only to promote underlying technologies.

Also Read | India mulls ban on private crypto: What it means for investors

Nirmala Sitharaman
was asked the question by MP Thirumaavalavan Thol. The MP asked several critical
questions on cryptocurrency trading in India, including whether the government
is aware of cryptocurrencies being traded in India and whether cryptocurrency
trading is legal in India. Additionally, the MP asked if cryptocurrency
exchanges are a legally permitted entity in India.

To the MP’s
questions, Pankaj Chaudhary, Minister of State (MoS) in the finance ministry,
said: “Government does not collect information on trading in cryptocurrency.
Cryptocurrencies are unregulated in India.”

Bitcoin, one of
the world’s most popular cryptocurrencies, was introduced in 2008 by a group of
programmers. It is said to be the first decentralised digital currency where
peer-to-peer transactions take place without any intermediary. Bitcoin allows
users buy goods and services and exchange money without the involvement of
banks, credit card users or any other third parties.

Meanwhile, the
highlight of Monday’s first sitting of the winter session of Parliament was the
repeal of the three farm laws. The three laws were repealed within four minutes
without discussion.