India is the home of some 1.4 billion people and growing by leaps and bounds. India’s population could challenge China in a very short time. China has 1.386 billion people as compared to 1.339 in India and the US has a mere 325.70 million citizens.
Increased Demand Limited Supply
With the most recent Supreme Court ruling in India, these 1.4 billion people are now legally allowed to trade and invest in cryptocurrency. India’s obsession with gold is well known around the world. To most Western commentators, this obsession seems irrational, and Indian people seem like incurable gold bugs.
India Hoards Gold
However, on closer examination, gold ownership in India is neither excessive nor irrational. India’s private gold ownership is difficult to determine accurately. However, several websites, such as Gold Eagle, estimate the total private gold holdings to be about 15,000 metric tons. Compared to that figure, the Indian government owns a negligible 360 metric tons of gold. Just think if just a few percent of gold holders moved their assets into Bitcoin.
Gold, being of high value, could easily be hidden during times of strife, enabling ordinary citizens to avoid being looted by marauding armies. Further, a gold coin issued by one king could serve as money under any other king as long as the weight and purity of the issued coin could be assessed. Therefore, gold was the preferred medium of exchange and store of wealth. Will Bitcoin be the new mobile, flexible storage of wealth for the Indian population especially since the government is pushing for private gold holders to sell their stocks.
Supreme Court Ruling
Yesterday, India’s Supreme Court has overturned an almost two-year ban on cryptocurrency trading that was enforced by the country’s central bank. The ban, imposed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in April 2018 due to concerns of consumer protection, market integrity, and money laundering, had resulted in banks and other financial institutions being prohibited from dealing with entities that used cryptocurrency. (ZDNet)
Government Response
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said she “will go through the Supreme Court order allowing banks and financial institutions to provide services related to cryptocurrencies.”
“I will have to go through the apex court order and then will probably meet you all to see what we want to do or how we look at the judgement,” the minister said at a press briefing here.
She was responding to questions regarding government’s stand on cryptocurrencies in the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s judgement.
Binance has been closely monitoring the situation and invested accordingly and now they look set to leap ahead. among the best and promising startups that can lead India to become a top player are being backed by Binance exchange. These are Matic, Marlin Protocol, and WazirXIndia.