There are no credible inputs which indicate that popular cryptocurrency Bitcoin is being used for terror funding, ET Now reported citing Finance Ministry. Earlier in the month of January this year, the government had said that there is no such mechanism mechanism to prevent the misuse of cryptocurrencies by terror groups and other anti-national elements. The security agencies are keeping a close track on terror funding issues and illegal activities, the report added. The cryptocurrencies work with a great deal of anonymity and doesn’t actually depend on the state for its functioning, Arun Jaitley had then told the Parliament. There are 785 different types of cryptocurrencies which operate globally, he had then said.
In his 2018 budget speech, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had announced that cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are not legal tender in India and there are no legal safeguards for people dealing in them. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued repeated warnings to the cryptocurrency investors. Bitcoin price was recorded today at $8,132.63 down 1.51 percent on Coindesk exchange at the time of reporting. The highest that bitcoin price touched today was $8,329.93 and day’s low was recorded at $7,924.20.
HDFC Bank on March 13 banned its customers from using its credit, debit and prepaid cards to purchase cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin citing concerns raised by the RBI. HDFC Bank warned its customers that the central bank has also cautioned the public regarding the potential economic, operational, legal and security related risks connected with dealing in such currencies.
Before HDFC, even Citi India banned its customers from purchasing cryptocurrency using credit and debit card. In February, famous economist Nouriel Roubini who successfully predicted the housing crash of 2008 in the US said that Bitcoin is mother of all bubbles. It is the biggest bubble in human history if you compare it to Mississippi bubble, tech bubble, and Tulip mania, he had said.
