On February 9, the American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C., the Washington Nationals, announced the team has partnered with Terra, the open-source blockchain platform and decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). The Washington Nationals detail that the team is a “leading innovator” and is “consistently introducing new technologies to enhance the fan experience.” Washington Nationals Ink Long-Term Deal With Terra Major League Baseball (MLB) team the Washington Nationals has partnered with the blockchain platform and DAO Terra, according to an announcement published by the team on Wednesday. The deal with Terra follows a slew of sports-related deals with crypto firms, but the MLB team will be the first to partner with an open-source blockchain project. In addition to the partnership, the algorithmic stablecoin UST that’s issued on the Terra blockchain will be “accepted as a payment method at Nationals Park as early as next season.” “The Nationals continue t...
India’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has reportedly informally asked banks to cut ties with cryptocurrency exchanges and traders. Some banks in India have limited their exposure to the crypto market and some plan to stop all crypto-related transactions.
RBI Asking Banks to Cut Ties With Customers Dealing With Cryptocurrencies
The Indian central bank has informally urged lenders “to cut ties with cryptocurrency exchanges and traders,” Reuters reported Thursday, citing three unnamed sources. The news outlet quoted a senior bank executive as saying:
The regulator has been unofficially asking us why are we dealing in such business when it is ultra speculative. A lot of money flows overseas via this trade which the RBI is not comfortable with as it may lead to money laundering.
“ICICI Bank has already asked payment service companies that it works with to stop all crypto-related payment transactions,” three sources told the publication, noting that “other lenders are also following suit.”
A number of banks — including Axis Bank, Citibank, and Kotak Mahindra Bank — are limiting their exposure to the cryptocurrency market while Indusind Bank is in the process of stopping all crypto-related transactions, sources said.
“Axis Bank has taken a fairly negative stance against crypto,” a crypto exchange CEO explained. “They are citing internal policy and risk measures and have stopped transactions with crypto exchanges.” Another source told the publication:
Even though the discussions are informal that is enough. No one wants to go against the regulator.
This move by the RBI came at a time when the crypto industry is booming in India. In addition, the Indian supreme court quashed the RBI circular in March last year that banned banks from providing services to the crypto industry.
Meanwhile, the Indian government still has not introduced a cryptocurrency bill despite planning to do so during the Budget session of parliament. According to the description of the bill on Lok Sabha’s website, it seeks to “prohibit all private cryptocurrencies in India” while regulating the digital rupee to be issued by the RBI.
Last month, the Indian finance minister talked about what might be in the crypto bill, emphasizing that there will be a very calibrated position taken. In February, RBI governor Shaktikanta Das said: “We have certain major concerns about cryptocurrencies. We have communicated them to the government.” He subsequently said that the RBI and the Indian government have the same opinion on cryptocurrency.
What do you think about the central bank asking banks to cut ties with crypto traders and businesses? Let us know in the comments section below.
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