India set to ban crypto trading, penalise traders, miners

India is set to ban Bitcoin, Dogecoin and other crypto money with move that targets miners and traders in the country.

The Government says it will also fine anyone holding such digital assets. This will impact crypto money investors.

The new bill proposes to criminalise possession, issuance, mining, trading and transferring crypto-assets, a senior government official said on Monday.

The government has been planning an action against cryptocurrencies for past few months but recent comments had given some hope to investors. However, if the new bill is enacted into a law, it will be a point of concern for them. This will make India the first major economy to make holding cryptocurrency illegal.

The official said that investors will be given a window of six months to liquidate their assets before a penalty is levied on them.

In India, over 7 million people are believed to have invested more than $1 billion in cryptocurrency and would be hoping for a way to get reimbursed before a law is imposed.

The industry is also hopeful that the government will not impose a complete on cryptocurrencies including and might just end up regulating the trade.

The official said that the plan is to ban private crypto-assets while promoting blockchain technology which forms the backbone for virtual currencies. The claims come at a time when Bitcoin has seen a fresh surge in price.

World’s biggest cryptocurrency hit a record high $60,000 on Saturday, nearly doubling in value this year as its acceptance for payments has increased with support from such high-profile backers as Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk.