Are Cryptocurrencies Evil?

Centre, RBI and the judiciary blow hot and cold on legality of crypto-currencies, leaving investors and 340 trading platforms in a fix

- Avneet Kaur

TO BE OR NOT TO BE

Feb 2021

A high-level committee formed to study issues related to virtual currencies (VCs) has recommended that all private cryptocurrencies, except those issued by the state, should be prohibited.

Feb 2021

Central bank has reservations about cryptocurrencies and is working on its own digital currency

March 2021

A lot of negotiations and discussions are happening around cryptocurrency with RBI. We want to make sure there is a window available for all kinds of experiments which will have to take place in the crypto world

March 2020

When the consistent stand of RBI is that they have not banned VCs and when the Government is unable to take a call despite several committees coming up with several proposals, including two draft bills, both of which advocated exactly opposite positions, it is not possible for us to hold that the impugned measure is proportionate

On May 22, 2010, Laszlo Hanyecz, a Florida-based programmer, made the world’s first commercial transaction using bitcoins. He bought two pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins. At today’s prices, that’s $357 million, making it the world’s most expensive food order ever. A month ago, when bitcoin was at its peak, the two pizzas would have been valued at $600 million. Cryptocurrency enthusiasts celebrate May 22 as the Bitcoin Pizza Day.