Indian crypto exchange WazirX has reportedly paid over $6.62 million (49.2 crore rupees) following non-payment of Goods and Services Tax (GST) on trade commissions. The total recovery includes the pending tax of $5.43 million (40.5 crore rupees), the interest and a penalty for non-payment. Government officials from the Central GST and Central Excise committee (CGST Mumbai Zone) recovered the funds from the crypto exchange after detecting a GST evasion of $5.43 million on the commissions. A typical GST fraud involves creating fake invoices without actually moving the goods between the seller and the buyer. Officers of CGST Mumbai East comm'te …

From a price perspective, the cryptocurrency market is ending 2021 with a whimper as Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and other digital assets continue to trade well below their prior peaks. But the business of blockchain and crypto is heating up, as evidenced by the arrival of institutional capital and the flood of venture funding into the space. According to Nischal Shetty, CEO of India's WazirX crypto exchange, the digital asset revolution is already underway and will continue with or without your participation. Below is the concise version of the latest "Crypto Biz" newsletter, which is delivered to your inbox every …

The Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Ajay Tyagi urged mutual funds to avoid investing in crypto-related assets as the government considers new cryptocurrency rules. Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Tyagi advised firms to refrain from investing in funds linked to crypto assets until there is clarity on the policy and regulatory framework. “Those who have invested in mutual funds, - in companies related to crypto assets or foreign firms through fund-of-funds (FOF) - my thinking is that till we get clarity on its (crypto's) policy, businesses should not make such investments,” said the …

Indian entrepreneur and the CEO of crypto exchange WazirX Nischal Shetty envisions a race between countries to launch their local versions of central bank digital currencies (CBDC) in the coming year. Speaking to Cointelegraph, Shetty said that the year 2022 would be an extension of the ongoing discussions around crypto regulations, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and the emergence of the metaverse: “We’re optimistic that we’ll get regulatory clarity, see institutional participation fuel retail adoption. We also expect to see more metaverse projects making an entrance.” Shetty pointed out that the crypto industry today — directly or indirectly — employs about 50,000 …

It is that time of the year: Singular events must be abandoned in favor of end-of-year, big-picture narratives and yearly lessons learned. As many governments across the globe finally had to face the rapidly mainstreaming realm of digital finance, the year is packed with developments in crypto policy and regulation that are impossible to fit into a neat little summary. However, it is possible to try and distill several major trends that have come to the fore during the past 12 months, and that will keep shaping the relationship among societies, state power and the crypto space as we roll …

Goel highlighted the various methods that are actively being used by fraudsters to dupe investors such as lucrative investment opportunities, illegitimate bank transfers and cryptocurrencies. Acknowledging the growth of Indian crypto users, Goel added: “They [fraudsters] ask you to share your cryptocurrency details. And once you put it in your wallet, then the money is taken away.” After simplifying the elaborate fraud in a sentence, Goel also highlighted that sixteen such cases have been registered involving cryptocurrencies. The Additional Commissioner of Police Shikha Goel warned Indian citizens about the rise in cybercrime in an event hosted by the city police …

The Indian government may still be considering a bill that could ban certain cryptocurrencies in the country, but lawmakers are unlikely to vote on any legislation in the current parliamentary session. According to a Dec. 17 publication, India's lower house of parliament, Lok Sabha, will likely not be looking at a bill proposing the prohibition of “all private cryptocurrencies” before its winter session ends on Dec. 23. The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill does not appear as one of the seven bills on the government body’s agenda over the last days of its 2021 session. A Nov. …

In 2021, the market cap of cryptocurrencies skyrocketed 286% year over year, uplifting a $2.17 trillion industry into the stratosphere. But, with this vast creation of wealth comes the explosion of peculiar tales throughout the sector. From the suspicious death of multiple crypto-evangelists and crypto scams involving hacked Twitter accounts of heads of states to much-promoted celebrity NFT drops that bombed at the auction, 2021 was truly a wild year for the cryptocurrency cyberspace. Without further ado, let’s look at the top strangest stories that have captivated blockchain enthusiasts this year. No 1. The death of John McAfee On June …

The state government of Telangana announced the launch of the India Blockchain Accelerator program to foster early-stage Web2 and Web3 startups and blockchain developers aimed at solving real-world challenges. The program will be launched in partnership with unicorn crypto exchange CoinSwitch Kuber and Lumos Labs, a technology innovation management firm. In a dialogue with Cointelegraph, Rama Devi Lanka, Director Emerging Technology and Officer on Special Duty (OSD), ITE&C Department, Government of Telangana, highlighted the state’s intent to adopt blockchain projects across multiple use cases: “Some of the interesting use cases that the state has already piloted in Blockchain include - …

Gita Gopinath, the chief economist of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has called for a global policy to be put in place that will regulate cryptocurrency, instead of banning it. Pitching for a global policy, Gopinath, who will soon take charge as the deputy managing director of the IMF, argued that if countries were to ban crypto then they would not have any control over offshore exchanges that are not subject to their country's regulations, which could result in them being ignored completely. “There are challenges to banning it whether you can end up with truly banning crypto because many …

Cryptocurrency made an appearance at a global online summit for world leaders in a speech from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At Friday’s events for the Summit for Democracy hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden, Modi said India would be willing to offer other countries “innovative digital solutions” to facilitate free and fair elections and governance. In addition, the Prime Minister called for a global standard on cryptocurrencies and major social media platforms, likely referring to the impact some have had on politics in India as well as many other countries: "We must also jointly shape global norms for emerging …

The Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), a non-government trade association and advocacy group, has proposed to treat cryptocurrencies as securities of a special class. The trade association released a report titled “Cryptocurrencies, Crypto Tokens/Assets & Regulations: The Way Forward” where it advocates for regulating the crypto market instead of outlawing it, reported Business Line. The report highlighted substantial technological innovation that the core technology of blockchain can bring in the payment and remittance sector. The report proposes to formulate new regulations around the nascent crypto market instead of regulating them under existing securities law. “A new set of regulations appropriate …