A Study on the Impact of Bitcoin on the Indian Economy

Abstract: The silence of the RBI on the regulatory status of bitcoins may prove to be damaging. An industry has grown around bitcoins in India- traders, exchanges and merchants who accept payments in bitcoins. Bitcoins have already gained wide acceptance around the world- hence banning them would not be an option in India. Instead, this industry would need to be regulated. The sooner this is done, the better. A bitcoin is a virtual currency first introduced in the year 2008 by an anonymous group called Satoshi Nakamoto. It’s an open source peer-to-peer cryptographical system (direct connections without an intermediary) where transactions happen through a public ledger called blockchain, handling users’ data anonymously. Eight years since its introduction, bitcoin is today the most widely used and accepted digital currency.By categorically reiterating that cryptocurrencies could not be part of the ‘payment process’, India buries the economic possibilities of crypto as a currency. However, the positive focus on blockchain technology is redeeming the bitcoin