The news outlet Business Standard reported yesterday that Jammu and Kashmir police in India have issued a public warning with regard to investing in cryptocurrencies, noting the associated heightened risks.
The Inspector General of the police crime branch issued the warning in a statement saying: “The general public is informed not to make any type of investment in cryptocurrencies, virtual currencies such as bitcoin because there is a real and heightened risk associated with them,” citing the instability of the market values of the digital asset class.
His concerns were especially directed towards retailers who were at risk of losing their “hard earned money” as a result of exposure to “sudden and prolonged crash.” He further cautioned the citizens of the state to be wary of such investments as they are not backed as a “legal tender” and not under the control of any “central financial institution.”
India has been careful on deciding a suitable regulatory oversight of digital assets and has in the recent months been more focused on the blockchain and AI technology aspects than yielding to the acceptance of cryptocurrency within its walls.
The final draft for a crypto-bill which was expected last month is yet to be released meanwhile a rather strange development ensued. Just a few days back, the Central Bank of India pulled back from its state-issued cryptocurrency project. This was rather puzzling as few days before the project was shelved, a local English news outlet reported on the possibility of legalizing digital currencies, according to an unnamed official.
However, recent stats from its population reveal that those currently involved with bitcoin stands at an amazing 2.5 million. One could say that an approximate 5% of the total population of India into cryptocurrency isn’t a fact to ignore.
On the bright side, it would seem that some within the government are optimistic about the distributed ledger technology and the fight is only against bitcoin, altcoin, and cryptocurrencies in general – since it has decided to stop its own “crypto-rupee” indefinitely.
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