India to block crypto currency from its payments system: Finance Ministry Official

India wants to make crypto currencies illegal tender in its payments system. India will also set up a regulator to keep a check on the unregulated exchanges that trade in “crypto assets”, a finance ministry official said in an interview to CNBC TV18, Reuters reported.

“The government will take steps to make it illegal as a payment system,” he said at a post-budget event telecast by the news channel, adding the trading of “crypto assets” at the unregulated exchanges would be regulated, he was quoted as saying.

This panel will submit its report by the end of March 2018.

Even Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that the government does not think crypto currencies are legal tender and wants to take all measures to eliminate them from the payment system.

The head of exchange at India’s largest bitcoin exchange, Zebpay said that the exchanges would help the government by cooperating in framing the new rules.