New Delhi: Former Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Raghuram Rajan said on Wednesday that most of the existing cryptocurrencies will be destroyed and only a few of them may survive.
In conversation with CNBC, Rajan said that most cryptos have no permanent value, and only a few exist to provide payments, specifically cross-border payments.
“Only 1 or 2 or a handful of 6,000 # cryptocurrencies can survive,” he said.
Rajan further added that a lot of people holding crypto assets are going to suffer from the Centre’s regulation bill, adding that most crypto has value simply because there is a big fool out there ready to buy.
Citing the example of crypto markets in the US, the former RBI governor said: “In the US, crypto is a $2.5 trillion problem that no one really wants to regulate. To some extent, regulators are controlling this industry as a whole. and how to regulate it.”
Rajan’s remarks came a day after the government said it would introduce the much-talked-about bill to regulate and ban cryptocurrencies in the country.
The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill seeks to ban all but some private cryptocurrencies by the RBI to promote the underlying technologies while allowing official digital currency.
The bill, if passed, would effectively ban people from transacting in most cryptocurrencies.
Traders and investors said the announcement triggered a huge sell-off in the country’s digital currency markets, as investors looked to exit the position despite losses.
Cryptocurrency traders said that many exchanges were facing deposit and withdrawal challenges due to the large volume sales.
One of India’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, WazirX, earlier said on its official Twitter account that it was investigating reports that users were facing delays on its app and website. Later he said that the issue has been resolved.
According to industry estimates, there are an estimated 15 million to 20 million cryptocurrency investors in India, with total crypto holdings of around Rs 400 billion. There is no official data available on cryptocurrency holdings and user base.
(with inputs from agencies)
In conversation with CNBC, Rajan said that most cryptos have no permanent value, and only a few exist to provide payments, specifically cross-border payments.
“Only 1 or 2 or a handful of 6,000 # cryptocurrencies can survive,” he said.
Rajan further added that a lot of people holding crypto assets are going to suffer from the Centre’s regulation bill, adding that most crypto has value simply because there is a big fool out there ready to buy.
Citing the example of crypto markets in the US, the former RBI governor said: “In the US, crypto is a $2.5 trillion problem that no one really wants to regulate. To some extent, regulators are controlling this industry as a whole. and how to regulate it.”
Rajan’s remarks came a day after the government said it would introduce the much-talked-about bill to regulate and ban cryptocurrencies in the country.
The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill seeks to ban all but some private cryptocurrencies by the RBI to promote the underlying technologies while allowing official digital currency.
The bill, if passed, would effectively ban people from transacting in most cryptocurrencies.
Traders and investors said the announcement triggered a huge sell-off in the country’s digital currency markets, as investors looked to exit the position despite losses.
Cryptocurrency traders said that many exchanges were facing deposit and withdrawal challenges due to the large volume sales.
One of India’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, WazirX, earlier said on its official Twitter account that it was investigating reports that users were facing delays on its app and website. Later he said that the issue has been resolved.
According to industry estimates, there are an estimated 15 million to 20 million cryptocurrency investors in India, with total crypto holdings of around Rs 400 billion. There is no official data available on cryptocurrency holdings and user base.
(with inputs from agencies)
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