About 82% of Indians intend to invest in cryptocurrencies when the government clarifies its regulation of such assets, said a recent survey by Deloitte. Additionally, 77.4% of respondents believe cryptocurrency should be treated as a security.
The survey conducted by Deloitte and published in the Times of India examined cryptocurrency investment. According to more than 1,800 respondents, 55.2% have invested in cryptocurrencies and intend to continue doing so. Another 26.8% said they have not invested in crypto but are willing to do so once the government clarifies cryptocurrency regulation in India.
The report also noted that about 20 million people in India have invested in crypto, but 10.3% will avoid investing in this asset class in the future. The remaining 7.8% are against investing in crypto.
In response to a question about cryptocurrency, 48.5% of respondents said they would like to learn more about crypto investing, 39% said they were familiar with crypto assets very well, and 12.5% were not familiar with the concept.
Additionally, the survey found that 77.4% of respondents think cryptocurrency should be treated as securities. However, at least 58% of respondents had no idea investing in cryptocurrencies’ tax implications.
More than 62% of respondents wanted the government to issue clear guidelines on crypto regulation, while 30% desired to take steps to make crypto assets more popular. Meanwhile, 10% wanted crypto assets banned.
Saraswathi Kasturirangan, a partner at Deloitte, commented: ‘India has experienced a boom in cryptocurrency investments; however, the crypto industry is still waiting for the cryptocurrency bill to be passed that would detail the regulatory compliances involved with cryptocurrencies and how they would be taxed.’
Due to a lack of applicable tax provisions on crypto gains in India, the Deloitte partner said: “The government should come up with specific provisions with detailed rules on taxation of crypto addressing the issues.”
A cryptocurrency bill is still being drafted by the Indian government, even though it was expected to be discussed during the winter session of Parliament. The bill is reportedly being reworked.
However, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her Budget 2022, announced a flat 30 per cent taxation on income from crypto and digital assets.
In her Budget speech on February 1, Nirmala Sitharaman said, “There has been a phenomenal increase in transactions in virtual digital assets. The magnitude and frequency of these transactions have made it imperative to provide for a specific tax regime. Accordingly, for the taxation of virtual digital assets, I propose to provide that any income from transfer of any virtual digital asset shall be taxed at the rate of 30 per cent.”
On the other hand, in his recent speech, prime minister Narendra Modi said, “We have to have a similar mindset regarding crypto.” India’s central bank also claimed that cryptocurrency is subject to fraud. It has been recommended by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) that crypto be banned entirely, noting that a partial ban will not work.
