Crypto, Decentralised Finance Are Regulatory Arbitrage, Says CEA; Bitcoin Falls

Crypto and decentralised financial instruments seem to be a case of regulatory arbitrage rather than financial innovation, Chief Economic Adviser V. Anantha Nageswaran said at the India International Fintech Festival. 

According to Nageswaran, crypto and decentralised finance have yet to pass the fiat currency test. India has begun taxing cryptocurrency transactions and is due to complete a consultation paper on the matter. The government has refused to make its position on cryptocurrency public until the consultation document is released. Incidentally, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Rabi Sankar has also been critical of private cryptocurrencies over the last year or so. 

In other news, according to CoinDesk, cryptocurrency exchange OSL Digital Securities has partnered with Interactive Brokers to provide virtual asset services in Hong Kong. OSL is a subsidiary of BC Technology Group, shares of which are up by 4.39 per cent over the past 24 hours to HK$4.04, Coindesk reported.

Following the arrangement, Interactive Brokers will provide cryptocurrency services directly to its professional trading clients in Hong Kong.

Investors across the world are flocking to digital asset markets, and the partnership with OSL comes at a critical juncture in the growth of Hong Kong’s regulated digital asset ecosystem, according to David Friedland, head of APAC at Interactive Brokers.

Crypto Prices 

The price of Bitcoin in the cryptocurrency market…

Read more…