March 17, 2023
By Anjali Kochhar
India’s Enforcement Directorate is investigating “several” crypto cases for money-laundering schemes and has seized $115.5 million to date in such crimes, the country’s Ministry of Finance said.
The Indian crime-fighting agency has also arrested five individuals in crimes abetted by cryptocurrency and in the past sent a show cause notice to local exchange WazirX and its directors for crypto transactions exceeding $338 million, according to the finance ministry.
Last week, the Ministry of Finance said (PDF) that crypto will be governed by anti-money laundering rules in the South Asian market. Under the new change, crypto exchanges, NFT providers and custody wallet operators will be responsible for monitoring suspicious financial activities.
“Exchanges and wallet providers will be required to implement AML/CFT controls, and to be licensed or registered and supervised or monitored by national authorities,” the Ministry of Finance said this week.
India, in its ongoing G20 presidency, has also said that it will prioritise the development of a framework for global regulation of unbacked crypto assets, stablecoins and decentralized finance.
Last year, New Delhi took a stringent approach with cryptocurrencies by levying a 30% tax on all gains and a 1% deduction on each crypto transaction. The nation’s move, alongside the market downturn, has severely depleted the transactions that local exchanges CoinSwitch Kuber, backed by Sequoia India and Andreessen Horowitz, and CoinDCX, backed by Pantera, process in the nation.
About the author
Anjali Kochhar covers cryptocurrency stories in India as well as globally. Having been in the field of media and journalism for over three years now, she has developed a sharp news sense and works hard to present information that goes beyond the obvious. She is an avid reader and loves writing on a wide range of subjects.
