Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said there was complete harmony with which her department was working with Reserve Bank of India on all issues, including cryptocurrencies. She said there is a respect towards each other’s domain and priorities keeping the country’s interests in mind.
“Not just on crypto, but on every other thing as well. I think there’s complete harmony with which we’re working, respecting each other’s domain and also knowing what we’ve to do with each other’s priorities and in the interest of the nation,” the finance minister stated at a press meet.
RBI governor Shaktikanta Das said the issue of cryptocurrency was under discussion internally between the central bank and the government. “Whatever points we have, we have discussed with the government. Beyond that I think I will not like to further elaborate,” Das said.
Ms Sitharaman, while presenting the Union Budget on February 1, said a digital currency will be issued by the RBI in 2022-23 using the blockchain technology. The government also proposed to amend the RBI Act to include the central bank digital currency (CBDC) alongside traditional banknotes.
Recently, Mr Das had noted that private cryptocurrencies were a threat to macroeconomy and financial stability, and would undermine the central bank’s ability to deal with challenges on the two fronts. In a message for investors, he said such assets have no underlying whatsoever, “not even a tulip”.
Meanwhile, speaking about inflation, the RBI chief said, “As far as India is concerned, if you look at the momentum of inflation right from last October onward, it is on a downward trend. It’s primarily the statistical reasons, the base effect, which has resulted in higher inflation especially in the third quarter.”
