India’s central bank is reportedly researching regulatory frameworks for blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) launched a new unit about a month ago to tackle the issue according to Economic Times, which cited source familiar with the matter.
The unit’s mandate is to ‘research and possibly draft rules’ for emerging technologies, which includes blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
“As a regulator, the RBI also has to explore new emerging areas to check what can be adopted and what cannot. A central bank has to be on top to create regulations. This new unit is on an experimental basis and will evolve as time passes,” one of the sources cited said.
An RBI spokesperson did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The move comes nearly a year after RBI warned users and traders of virtual currencies about the potential “economic, financial, operational, legal, customer protection and security-related risks associated in dealing with virtual currencies”.
Earlier this year, RBI issued a letter to India’s payments banks, tightening the regulations around KYC, while on-boarding customers. It told payments banks to get their customers’ information verified by third parties. In a letter sent to chief executive officers of payments banks, RBI said: “reliance on KYC (know-your-customer) done by telecom companies is not permissible.”
Just a month later, RBI reportedly fined Airtel Payments Bank for violating Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations. The bank imposed the fine after scrutinising the bank’s documents relating to opening of accounts without any specific or clear consent from the customers. RBI added that the action was based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance.
Copyright © 2018 RegTech Analyst
Copyright © 2018 RegTech Analyst
