The Supreme Court has nullified an order by the Reserve bank of India (RBI) which was passed to ban financial services firms from trading in virtual currency or cryptocurrency.
Its decision comes after hearing several petitions filled against RBI’s April 2018 order of imposing a ban on financial firms or individuals in India from trading in cryptocurrencies.
The order issued by the apex judiciary comes almost two years after trading in virtual currency was barred by RBI.
While the order has revoked the ban on illegal cryptocurrency trade, it is worth noting that the government is all set with a draft bill that seeks to forbid mining, holding, selling, trade, issuance, disposal or use of cryptocurrency in the country.
Under the draft bill, all the aforementioned actions can be punished with a fine or imprisonment up to 10 years, or both in some cases.
The draft bill was developed by a government panel which also recommended the launch of an official government-backed digital currency in India to function like banknotes, to be issued through the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Meanwhile, the uncertainty pertaining to the regulatory norms with regards to the virtual currency trade continue.
