Prime Minister Narendra Modi said one has to be very careful with the usages of cryptocurrency because the major use of cryptocurrencies is to send money across borders. The transfer of money would be hassle-free and anonymous to an extent. With the help of the transaction fees paid by a user is reduced to a negligible or zero amount. It does so by eliminating the need for third parties, like VISA or PayPal, to verify a transaction.
Cryptocurrencies have always kept themselves as an optimal solution for transactions. Transactions, whether international or domestic in cryptocurrencies, are lightning-fast. This is because the verification requires very little time to process as there are very few barriers to cross. Although investing in cryptocurrencies has become a trend, the vulnerabilities in the cryptocurrency have begun surfacing too. This has raised a question in everyone’s mind – Is it too early to invest in cryptocurrencies?
In 2018, Bitcoin turned ten. The cryptocurrency has made headlines on multiple occasions that brought forth its random nature. Yet, the rise of Bitcoin has inspired the creation of thousands of other cryptocurrencies. These days many youngsters and tech enthusiasts and investors are interested in cryptocurrencies, they also continue to have mixed opinions about them. The price of Bitcoin suddenly rose to almost USD 20,000 and then dropped to USD 6,000. Due to such incidents, it is complicated for the investors to trust the ecology. Moreover, many people have no knowledge of how cryptocurrencies work, even if they own some.
Thus, predicting the rise and fall in the value of cryptocurrencies is immensely complicated. Another risk of owning cryptocurrencies is that various new crypto-based companies can create their own currency only to create hype and to attract investors. But, after the investment, the price of the cryptocurrency drops, making the investor bear losses. Likewise, thousands of cryptocurrencies are made with the sole intention of scamming investors and eventually the currency dies. Hence, it becomes complicated for investors to invest in cryptocurrencies.
At present, the infrastructure for cryptocurrencies is not quite established. It is necessary to understand the concept of the scalability dilemma, to find the roots of the scalability problem. Another major issue is that cryptocurrencies are not regulated at all, which makes it even harder for new investors to trust the system. In fact, a lot of people find the idea of investing in cryptocurrencies exciting, only because of the lack of any strict guidelines. We need some regulation to ensure that cryptocurrencies are used ethically and to observe stability in the market. Strong regulations would only make crypto coins and tokens universally tolerable.
While some countries are making regulations for safer and efficient use of cryptocurrencies, others have absolutely banned cryptocurrencies, whereas the remaining countries have no interest at all. Regulation would reduce the vulnerability in cryptocurrency and facilitate the growth of blockchain in mainstream applications. India is also now exploring various options to regulate it.
Increased institutional investment and acceptance of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin by companies like Paypal and Mastercard and the heightened visibility about the crypto industry in the media have contributed to the boom. Recently a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Modi, the Union government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was not quite on the same page on cryptocurrency — a sector that has been silently blooming in India over the past few months. The Modi government and its departments mooted for strong regulatory control on cryptocurrency to avoid money laundering and terror financing, rather than banning it entirely.
The RBI has constantly reiterated its strong views against cryptocurrencies since it gained popularity in India following a sudden boom in Bitcoin prices. The central bank’s argument is that cryptocurrencies pose serious threats to the macroeconomic and financial stability of the country. The RBI also doubted the number of investors trading on them as well as their claimed market value.
The RBI is primarily concerned about cryptocurrencies for their potential threat to the Indian rupee. If a large number of investors invest in digital coins rather than rupee-based savings like provident funds, the demand for the latter will fall. This will hamper the ability of banks to lend out money to their customers. Moreover, since cryptocurrencies are unregulated in the country and are difficult to trace, the government will also not be able to tax the amount, posing a threat to the rupee.
On top of that, cryptocurrencies can be used in money laundering and illegal activities. Crypto investors, for all these reasons, are in turn vulnerable to hacking, scams, and losses as crypto coins are volatile in nature. While the RBI’s stance remains rigid, it is indeed exploring possibilities to come up with a digital currency. The RBI had announced its intent to come out with an official digital currency, in the face of the proliferation of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Despite all the limitations and potential risks, more and more Indians are investing in cryptocurrencies. A newspaper advertisement in October claimed that Rs 6 trillion has been invested in cryptocurrencies by Indians. Looking at these developments one can assume that Cryptocurrencies may replace national currencies.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his first public comment on the subject as the government works on new rules for digital currencies said, “The world’s democracies must work together on cryptocurrency to ensure it “does not end up in the wrong hand”.
Manu Zacharia, Cyber Security Evangelist said, “Cryptocurrencies are more like a necessary evil. It is the future of digital currency. However, as with any technology, it is a double-edged sword. When not used in a controlled and mature manner, it can have devastating effects, both individually as well as from a national perspective. Cryptocurrencies have added a new dimension to information and financial warfare by evolving as one of the economic pillars for financial dominance. From an individual perspective; many youngsters are getting into the cryptocurrency space. A good amount of market study and analysis is always recommended to understand the risk involved and to take an appropriate decision.”
“From an individual perspective, many youngsters are getting into the cryptocurrency space. A good amount of market study and analysis is always recommended to understand the risk involved and to take an appropriate decision,” said Utkarsh Tambe, IT professional from Pune.
“I don’t understand its rationale. To me, it looks like a highly sophisticated Ponzi scheme. I hope Indian youth are able to resist the temptation,” said RTI activist Shailesh Gandhi.
Social Media Activist – Nandita Thakur said, “It seems cryptocurrency will be the future currency but with no rules and regulations, it is highly risky. The trend is Youth are the biggest investors in it, hope they are not stealing, borrowing or begging money to invest and are emotionally stronger to handle the situation arising in case of losing money.”
Harin Naik, an IT professional from Gujarat said, “Cryptocurrency used to be nerd money. Lots of early investors have made a fortune from it. Youth can be definitely vulnerable to it because it can buy anything and everything if you know where to shop for it.”
Suresh Nakhua, BJP spokesperson said, “As per latest reports more than 105 million Indians (7.9%) of the population is invested in the cryptocurrency to the tune of $10 Billion. Basically, cryptocurrency is a decentralised currency and nobody can deny its presence and influence. Indian govt is cognizant of the fact that this is an evolving tech and will keep a close eye on it and take proactive steps. The steps taken by GOI would be progressive and forward-looking, including engaging with experts and other stakeholders. The Government also feels that any attempt to mislead the youth through over-promising and non-transparent advertising has to be stopped. Unregulated crypto markets cannot be left to become avenues for money laundering and terror financing.”
Keval Domadia, a Cyber security expert from Gujarat said, “The base technology of cryptocurrency, the blockchain, and also the concept of a decentralised currency is definitely a concept of the 21st century. In fact, from economic evolution point of view, we have moved from barter to currency age, and have been doing so for over 5 centuries now. It is time to upgrade that and fill the gap of foreign exchange because the businesses have gone global. However, the implementation of a very promising BitCoin, ETH and every other crypto was wrong, it lacked global regulatory authority or a way to prove how their currency creates value. Without regulation, it is not at all a secured form of investment or a legal transaction tender. Eventually, it has turned out to be a Forex style gambling concept that thrives on marketing and pure speculation. Forex, however, returns something tangible, is recommended.”
Amandeep Singh, a farmer in the Tech domain said, “Cryptocurrency, like every other trend in technology, looks very lucrative at this time however we must keep in mind that it is not yet regulated. Indian youth should not look for and become habitual to make easy money from it.”
Ajit Hatti a cyber security expert said, “Money is the power which drives the world. Just like any other power source, money is regulated by the government and government authorized institutions. Cryptocurrencies make transactions anonymous and free from the control and regulations of government or institutions. This feature of cryptocurrency has been majorly (ab)used by bad actors, criminal syndicates to evade regulations, trace and accountability to carry out overwhelmingly large globally coordinated illegal activities. Ransomware attacks, Silk Road darknet are a few such examples. Common people in India are seeing Bitcoins and cryptocurrencies as investment avenues and assets as we have seen insane growth in the price of Bitcoins from a few pennies to 60K USD in a decade. People also see them as a reliable alternative to Swiss Bank accounts, which is not a viable option after the Indian government works out new disclosure agreements with the European countries.”
Bhavesh Parmar a Chartered Accountant said, “Most popular investment tools in India, higher profit in short term and more crypto exchange choices are attracting youth. High volatility in crypto exchange India platforms like WazirX, coinDCX, etc get more investors to make a user-friendly app.”
Anett Kontaveit put aside losing to Spain’s Garbine Muguruza in the championship match of the WTA Finals in Guadalajara on Wednesday, saying the momentum from her memorable end-of-season run would hold her in good stead next year.
The Supreme Court on Thursday quashed the Bombay High Court verdict which had held that no offence of sexual assault under the POCSO Act is made out if there is no direct skin-to-skin contact between an accused and victim.
A magistrate’s court on Wednesday declared former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh a “proclaimed offender” in an extortion case registered against him and other police officers in the city.
Singer-actor Harry Styles recently announced his foray into the beauty industry with the launch of his brand Pleasing, and his ladylove and actor Olivia Wilde showed support for her beau by sharing his brand reveal post. Taking to her Instagram Story, she cleverly captioned the black-and-white clip, “I find this very pleasing.”
The Supreme Court Collegium has approved the proposal for the elevation of senior advocate Saurabh Kirpal as a judge of the Delhi High Court. If appointed, Kirpal would be the first openly gay judge in the country. The matter had been stuck since India’s central intelligence agency, which reports to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, raised a red flag about Kirpal’s foreign life partner.
Laxmi Narayan Tripathi is a transgender/Hijra rights activist told Afternoon Voice, “There are many advocates and judges in India who are married to foreign women and many female advocates to foreign men. Saurabh’s sexuality should not be the reason why his candidature has not been considered for elevation as a judge. The government has to come out of their myopic vision.”
Pranam Seth (Gay Beautician) said, “Look at our skills are merits, we are no less than straight people. Saurabh Kripal is a very successful lawyer of India; he argued the case that led to the reading down of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, by giving us the right to live with dignity. If this time the government does not consider his candidature for judge of the Delhi High Court, then they are displaying their bigotry.”
Navya Singh, Brand Ambassador of Miss Transqueen India told us, “The NDA government is very conservative and anti-people government. If Kirpal’s sexual orientation is the reason why his elevation is pending, then these political parties should keep in mind, we too are the voters of this nation, and we have every right to reserve our vote against such prejudice.”
Aryan Pasha, India’s first trans man bodybuilder said, “Had he (Saurabh Kripal) been a straight person by now he would have got all the favours and perks. Our society and government still have this reservation for the LGBT community. We are in the 21st century, what message this government is giving to the common public, that one should not promote or encourage a Gay professional? This is dangerous.”
Actor Nushrratt Bharuccha says she was moved by the message of her upcoming film “Chhorii” because it uses horror as a narrative device to drive home a larger point without being “preachy”.
New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Jamieson will join skipper Kane Williamson on the sidelines for the Twenty20 series in India to prepare for the test series against the hosts later this month, coach Gary Stead said on Wednesday. The three-match T20 series begins in Jaipur later on Wednesday, three days after New Zealand lost the World Cup final to Australia in Dubai. The 6’8″ Jamieson was in the World Cup squad but did not play a single match.