Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, or CZ, spoke at a fintech conference in Singapore on Thursday, via a live stream. During his talk, CZ remarked on India’s draconian crypto tax laws. CZ went as far as to say that the tax laws may “kill the industry” in the subcontinent.
Earlier this year, the Indian government introduced massive taxation on the crypto sector. The entire country’s trading volume collapsed in a matter of weeks. Rather than bringing in astute regulations, the country decided to instead heavily tax the industry.
Avinash Shekhar, CEO of ZebPay, one of India’s oldest crypto exchanges, said that he is looking overseas for his company’s growth. Shekhar stated that the 1% transaction cost “has to come down, otherwise things are not going to improve.”
Is the Binance chief right about India?
The Binance boss is not wrong to assume that the high taxes may kill the crypto industry within India. However, it is only the currency side of things that the Indian government is against. That aside, the nation has opened its arms to blockchain technology. Polygon, one of the largest and most popular blockchains is also based in India. The country also rolled out its pilot for its very own CBDC project.
Additionally, India is currently looking at other countries to formulate its own crypto regulatory rules. Also, India will be presiding over the G20 nations, beginning in December 2022, for a period of one year. Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that cryptocurrencies are also on the agenda of things to address.
Many are worried that India may impose its taxation laws on a global front, but that is very unlikely. It is possible that India will bring up the case of scams and frauds that happen in the sector. Recently, Interpol had an assembly in New Delhi, India, where the subject of crypto scams was addressed. The international police agency, in the New Delhi assembly, announced the creation of a new crypto-focused unit.