India’s plans for crypto ban sparks sell-off 

What

A new bill being considered in the Indian government has triggered a cryptocurrency sell-off

Why

The bill proposes to bar the trading in most private cryptocurrencies

What next

The Indian government is planning to launch its own framework for its official digital currency

The Indian parliament is looking to bar most private cryptocurrencies when it introduces a new bill to regulate  cryptocurrencies, the government said yesterday.

The news, which would effectively mean that Indian citizens would be barred from trading in virtually all cryptocurrencies, prompted a sell-off of held  cryptocurrencies. The dollar-linked stable coin tether fell as much as 25% to around $0.80.

The move would pave the way for unique use of the official Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) that will be issued by the Reserve Bank of India. Its framework is included in the new bill.

There are no definitive figures on how much cryptocurrency is held by Indians. There are roughly 15 to 20 million cryptocurrency investors in India, with total crypto holdings of around 400 billion rupees, according to industry estimates. 

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