New Delhi. The country’s Finance Secretary TV Somanathan made a big deal about cryptocurrencies on Wednesday. Somanathan said that the world’s most popular cryptocurrency bitcoin, ethereum or non-fungible token (NFT) can never be declared legal tender or legal tender.
He said that the crypto asset has not received any approval from the government and its price is set privately.
However, Somanathan said that the digital currency brought by the Reserve Bank will never default. The Digital Rupee issued by RBI will be a legal tender.
The Finance Secretary clearly said, “Bitcoin or Ethereum or NFT…they will never be declared a legal tender. A crypto asset is an asset whose price or value is determined between two people. He said that you buy gold, buy diamond or buy crypto, but the government never decides its price by authorization.
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Advising to avoid investing in crypto, Somanathan said, “People investing in private crypto should understand that it does not have government authorization. There is no guarantee that your investment will be successful or not, losses can happen and the government is not responsible for it.
‘Crypto is a speculative transaction’
Regarding tax on crypto, Somanathan said, “Crypto is a speculative transaction, so we are taxing it at the rate of 30 percent. No one knows the real value of bitcoin or ethereum. Their rate fluctuates daily. Those earning through crypto will now have to pay 30 percent. This is the new policy of the government.”
The Finance Secretary said that this tax is not only for crypto, it is for all speculative income. For example, if I take the income from horse race, then that too is taxed at 30 per cent. There is already 30 per cent tax on any speculative transaction. That’s why we have decided to tax cryptocurrencies at the same rate.