Crypto and decentralised financial instruments seem to be a case of regulatory arbitrage rather than financial innovation, Chief Economic Adviser V. Anantha Nageswaran said at the India International Fintech Festival.
According to Nageswaran, crypto and decentralised finance have yet to pass the fiat currency test. India has begun taxing cryptocurrency transactions and is due to complete a consultation paper on the matter. The government has refused to make its position on cryptocurrency public until the consultation document is released. Incidentally, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Rabi Sankar has also been critical of private cryptocurrencies over the last year or so.
In other news, according to CoinDesk, cryptocurrency exchange OSL Digital Securities has partnered with Interactive Brokers to provide virtual asset services in Hong Kong. OSL is a subsidiary of BC Technology Group, shares of which are up by 4.39 per cent over the past 24 hours to HK$4.04, Coindesk reported.
Following the arrangement, Interactive Brokers will provide cryptocurrency services directly to its professional trading clients in Hong Kong.
Investors across the world are flocking to digital asset markets, and the partnership with OSL comes at a critical juncture in the growth of Hong Kong's regulated digital asset ecosystem, according to David Friedland, head of APAC at Interactive Brokers.
Crypto Prices
The price of Bitcoin in the cryptocurrency market fell by 0.30 per cent in the last 24 hours, and it was trading at $30,349.30 at 5:30 pm IST. According to Coinmarketcap.com, its dominance in the crypto market is currently at 46.44 per cent, down by 0.09 per cent in the last 24 hours.
In the last 24 hours, Ethereum (ETH) was trading at $1,808.17, down by 0.07 per cent, while Binance Coin (BNB) was down by 0.06 per cent during the same time period, and was trading at $291.04. Solana (SOL) was up by 4.86 per cent to $41.37, while Cardano (ADA) was down by 0.30 per cent to $0.6428.
Meme Coins
Dogecoin was trading at $0.07997 at 5:30 pm IST, down by 0.09 per cent on Coinmarketcap.com. Its rival, Shiba Inu, was down by 0.33 per cent, and it was trading at $0.00001068. Samoyedcoin was down by 1.15 per cent, and it was trading at $0.005954, while Dogelon Mars was up by 0.43 per cent, and it was trading at $0.0000004288.
Overall Scenario
According to Coinmarketcap.com, the global crypto market cap was at $1.25 trillion, an increase of 0.13 per cent in the last 24 hours, while the total crypto market volume was $63.78 billion, a decrease of 29.85 per cent.
Burn to Earn was the biggest gainer, gaining 924.42 per cent. It was trading at $0.000000474 at 5:30 pm IST, according to Coinmarketcap. In contrast, Saitama witnessed the maximum loss and fell by 90.41 per cent. It was trading at $0.0000000005417.
