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India is open for business! Supreme Court rejects central bank's trading ban, Binance-partnered exchange surges 50% instantly

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India is open for business! Supreme Court rejects central bank

Bloomberg's latest report indicates that the Supreme Court of India has rejected a ban imposed by the Reserve Bank of India which prohibited banks from dealing with any cryptocurrency-related transactions. As the third-largest economy in Asia, this is undoubtedly a significant boost for the widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies in India.

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In April 2018, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) banned banks from dealing with cryptocurrency exchanges and related institutions. After a long legal battle, the Supreme Court ultimately overturned the ban.

Three judges led by Rohinton F. Nariman agreed with petitions filed by cryptocurrency exchanges, startups, and industry bodies, stating that the central bank had no authority to ban cryptocurrencies and had not conducted sufficient research on the matter.

Su Zhu, CEO of venture capital firm Three Arrows Capital, expressed on Twitter that it was a major victory for the Indian cryptocurrency industry, successfully challenging the RBI's ban from April 2018.

https://twitter.com/zhusu/status/1235075109779460097

Cryptographer and AI expert Joe McCann from Microsoft also commented:

India is almost as big as China, so if true, this would open up a potentially massive market for Bitcoin buyers.

Blockchain-related institutions in India had strongly opposed the ban. Previously, the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) had expressed discontent with the ban, stating:

RBI exercising any power must comply with legislative procedure. Otherwise, tomorrow RBI can say we cannot eat cheeseburgers, so it must have specific authority, and if not, the whole system will be absurd.

Following this positive development, the crypto community celebrated, with industry leaders like Binance congratulating:

The Supreme Court of India has lifted the banking ban by the Reserve Bank of India #Crypto! Looking forward to our partners WazirX India (Indian cryptocurrency exchange) bringing financial freedom to 1.3 billion people.

Upon the news, the exchange's token WRX immediately surged by 50%:

Overall, this ruling is beneficial for the promotion of the entire crypto industry, especially in a developing country like India where many people are still underserved by traditional financial services. It opens up endless possibilities for blockchain startups to thrive without central bank pressure.

Further Reading

  • Nordics Moving Towards Cashless Society, Sweden Continues CBDC Trials, Finnish Scholars Remain Skeptical
  • Bloomberg: Libra May Shift to Backing Multiple Digital Fiat Currencies to Gain Regulatory Approval

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