India may not yet be sure how it wants to view the cryptocurrency space, but it can’t be said that the country isn’t continuing to try to understand the technology. An upcoming blockchain summit that is being backed by the government could go a long way to clear the air and help policymakers have a clearer view of blockchains and digital assets which will, hopefully, lead to crypto’s acceptance at the highest levels of India’s legislation.
The summit is going to be held February 22-23. It is being supported by the State Government of Uttar Pradesh and the country’s Department of Science and Technology. Participating in the event will be government agencies such as the Ministry of Law and Justice, the Department of Information Technology and the Ministry of Human Resources Development.
The summit’s website states, “The summit is targeted towards enabling Indian government and ministries to speed up the process of developing a flourished blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystem.”
A committee, headed by Secretary of Economic Affairs Subhash Chandra Garg, has already been created in India in an effort to draft crypto policies. Garg won’t be able to attend the summit personally, due to other obligations that have him out of the country, but will reportedly have a team on hand to collect information to be used later in the policy drafts – only on the second day.
The event is also going to receive participation by FinTech firm Cashaa. Its Marketing VP, Janina Lowisz, states, “For the first time, the ministers from all relevant departments have come together with experts from the space as well as from leading universities and global brands to learn about and speed up the process of regulating cryptocurrency.”
The summit is expected to see a significant turnout and will have participation by a number of individuals in both the finance and blockchain ecosystems, as well as others. It will be the perfect opportunity for government officials to get an in-depth view of blockchains, which should help the country move forward with establishing regulations.
However, there definitely won’t be any overnight epiphanies. Even after seeing the value of crypto and the blockchain, lawmakers are going to take some considerable time before they can formulate any regulatory framework, possibly a year or more. At least it’s a step in the right direction.
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