Author
Asst Prof Kiruthika Dhanapal
Organisation/Institution
Chennai Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College, Pudupakkam
Country
INDIA
Panel
Banking and Finance
Title
Cryptocurrency Regulation in India: Emerging Trends and Regional Relevance in Asia
Abstract
Cryptocurrencies are considered to be a subset of virtual currencies which are electronic in nature; protected by cryptography and used for peer to peer transaction payment. The acceptance given to cryptocurrencies across various industries and among various countries is steadily increasing due to the decentralised concept which operates free of central banks. There exist disparities among the countries in the world towards their approach on cryptocurrencies. India received recognition as a global leader in cryptocurrency adoption, as per Chainalysis, a prominent blockchain analytics platform. The latest 2024 Chainalysis report underscores India's leadership in grassroots crypto adoption, ranking the nation 1st among 154 countries. This widespread adoption is reflected in the ownership statistics, with an estimated 97.5 million Indians, constituting 7.1% of the population, currently holding virtual currency. The 2024 Global Crypto Adoption Index, released in October, showcased India's remarkable performance, with a substantial influx of $750 billion in crypto value observed between July 2023 and June 2024. This exceptional achievement positioned India as the largest contributor to crypto adoption globally, followed by Nigeria and Indonesia. The legal status of the currency, which is becoming very popular among the business communities and society, remains in the dark. As in October 2025, there is no legislation that regulates the cryptocurrencies in India. The Indian Government is looking at recommendations and the Bill is yet to be tabled before the legislature. This being the situation, it is high time to analyze the place of cryptocurrencies under the Indian Legal framework by examining various Indian statues so as to understand its implications and other issues. In this backdrop, the paper examines the initiatives undertaken by the Government of India, the evolving regulatory stance of the Reserve Bank of India, and the judiciary’s perspective on cryptocurrency regulation. It further explores India’s emerging role at the global and regional levels, emphasizing its participation in G20 deliberations and its comparative position with leading Asian jurisdictions such as Singapore, Japan, etc in fostering a balanced, innovation-driven, and responsible regulatory environment for digital assets.
Biography
Kiruthika Dhanapal currently holds the position as an Assistant Professor of Law at Chennai Dr.Ambedkar Government Law College Pudupakkam. She obtained her B.A.,B.L. (Hons.) degree from School of Excellence in Law, P.G.D.I.P.L. from Tamil Nadu Dr.Ambedkar Law University and LL.M. in Business Law from Chennai Dr.Ambedkar Government Law College, Chennai. She completed her M.A. in Public Administration from University of Madras. She is currently pursing her Ph.D. at the VIT School of Law, VIT University, Chennai. She is a Member of the Tamil Nadu State Moot Court Committee for the Academic year 2024-25 and also served as a Member for the Academic year 2022-23. She is a Member of the LL.M. Admission Committee of the Directorate of Legal Studies, Government of Tamil Nadu since the Academic Year 2022-23. She is one of the Contributors and Co-Investigator of the Project titled Police System India Series- Tamil Nadu Police. She is featured and awarded “THE PHENOMENAL SHE” (Book featuring 100 women achievers across nation) 7th Edition by the Indian National Bar Association at the Constitution Club of Indian on 30th March, 2025. She has presented Research papers at 56 Seminars and Conferences at International and National level including 20th & 21st Asian Law Institute Conference, Singapore and Bangkok and has won several best paper awards. She authored 48 Legal Research articles which are published by various reputed UGC Care Listed and Scopus Indexed journals and publications. She is also the author of the Book titled “Anthology of my Musings on LAW”.
