Govt may not take up cryptocurrency Bill in ongoing Parliament session

A Union Cabinet meeting on Wednesday did not discuss a Bill regulating cryptocurrencies, which means that Parliament’s Winter Session ending on December 23 is unlikely to take up the legislation.

The government had listed the Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill 2021 for tabling and passage in this session. While the written listing had said that the Bill would prohibit all private cryptocurrencies in India, it was later clarified that the descriptor had been carried over from the listing of the Budget Session of Parliament.

The Bill had not been introduced then and was not listed for the Monsoon Session either. Finance Secretary T V Somanathan and other officials have made two things clear: Cryptocurrencies will not be allowed as legal tender, and they may be allowed as regulated tradable financial assets.