Need to be very careful of cryptocurrency, says DFS Secy M Nagaraju

Echoing the Reserve Bank of India’s concerns, M Nagaraju, Secretary of the Department of Financial Services, expressed scepticism about cryptocurrencies and stressed the need for caution regarding such asset classes.

 

Speaking at the State Bank of India (SBI) Economic Conclave, Nagaraju said, “I am very sceptical of cryptocurrency. RBI is also very careful on that. We need to be very careful.”

 

Last month, speaking at a conference in the United States, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das had said that cryptocurrencies pose huge risks to financial stability and monetary stability. He asserted that such assets may create a situation where the central bank could lose control of the money supply in the economy.

 

RBI has consistently maintained that cryptocurrencies pose risks to the stability of India’s financial system. India, he said, was the first country to raise questions about cryptocurrencies. Under the G20 presidency of India, there was an agreement to develop an international understanding on how to deal with the crypto ecosystem. Some progress has been made in this regard, he added.

 

Separately, Nagaraju said that by 2027-28, he would like to see at least one Indian bank among the top ten banks in the world in terms of assets. Currently, at least four Chinese banks are part of the top ten banks globally.