How Much has India’s Crypto Policy Developed?
India has come a long way after only recently accepting cryptocurrencies to developing a Crypto policy. Even Crypto Exchanges in India who have faced difficult times, to say the least, have come out on top after undergoing grueling regulations.
India may double down on taxing crypto services!
India might be looking into imposing a GST tax on Crypto Exchanges that operate in India regardless of where in the world they are based in. As offering Crypto transactions is accepted as a service according to the tax department, it may be subjected to a goods and service tax(GST) of 18%, similar to the tax required by conventional brokerages, which are only on the commission taken by the company. This will not be an issue for Exchanges that are based in India as they already abide by these rules. It is still odd for the country to start with a tax as it still doesn’t have a concrete policy on cryptocurrencies.
However, that hasn’t stopped it from potentially adding a 2% levy on crypto-related services. This will be challenging to navigate considering the ambiguity around India’s crypto policy. The levy on e-commerce companies or Google tax has collected Rs 4000 Crore ($537 million) from 2016 to 2020. The Google tax has been a point of contention for a long time and has been causing sparks between the US and India.
The US has also been working on taxing cryptocurrencies and including a proposal that will need investors to report to the IRS(Internal Revenue Service) for transfers worth more than $10,000. Although its firm policy on cryptocurrency makes it more manageable to enforce a proposal.
Indian Crypto Exchanges working to make cryptocurrencies and NFTs more accessible!
Crypto Exchanges in India have struggled to get banks on board with offering their services to them after RBI’s informal policy that compelled them to do so. This has only become a problem lately as major payment platforms like Paytm and RazorPay have discontinued their support for crypto Exchanges. Although this hasn’t stopped them from implementing P2P transactions and parenting with smaller digital payment platforms like Airpay.
WazirX, India’s largest Crypto Exchange acquired by Binance has been involved in money laundering scams and with more heinous allegations to a degree where people have lost trust in Crypto Exchanges. However, the Exchange’s association with the people who committed the actual crime is questionable.
TRM Labs is an organization that assists companies with preventing people from stealing money through digital wallets and helps mitigate financial crime. It has partnered with WazirX to discover these bad players that are propagating such scams and put an end to the rampant fraud that takes place via their services. This will guarantee a layer of safety to many who are afraid of getting scammed by criminals who use these services for their own benefit.
WazirX has also been delving into the NFT market by experimenting with its own marketplace for digital art. This was done with the help of Buiance’s blockchain tech. For now, art can only be purchased via WazirX’s native token, “WRX”. Though it permits the transfer of digital assets to other blockchains like Ethereum. Prominent Indian artists have also joined in on this platform offering their artwork. The platform also allows artists to charge a royalty fee of up to 15% on every resale. It has strayed away from bidding as of now as it is looking for people to join in.
Published By
DWAYNE D’CUNHA, WRITER ON MEDIUM.
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