oppn parties VDAs Brought Under PMLA, Exchanges To Be Reporting Entities

News Snippets

  • Allahabad HC said that the UP Police is acting as law unto themselves as they detained a person unlawfully even before his arrest
  • Kolkata witnesses traffic snarls on the first day of the Durga Puja festival as revellers start pnadal-hopping
  • Neha Bora was subsequently released and Dipke is to appear before a magistrate today at noon
  • Delhi Police detained Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke, Neha Bora of AISA, student leaders and supporters ahead of a rally in Connaught Place demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation. The protest followed the detention and jailing of two CJP leaders earlier in the week over demonstrations at Jantar Mantar
  • The Reserve Bank of India is considering further monetary tightening to counter capital outflows and increase the cost of betting against the rupee, according to bankers and analysts cited by Reuters. The measures follow recent rate increases and steps to drain liquidity as pressure on the currency and inflation concerns persist
  • India directed oil marketing companies to stop diverting sugar-based feedstocks for ethanol production in the 2026–27 supply year, according to a new tender issued on Friday. The companies have invited bids for 11 billion litres of ethanol made from alternatives including corn and broken rice, amid concerns about domestic sugar supplies and prices
  • Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India's trade imbalance with China was growing sharply and attributed the problem partly to restrictions on Indian goods and services entering the Chinese market. China subsequently said it was ready to work with India to address mutual economic and trade concerns; India's trade deficit with China reached $69 billion in the first half of FY2026–27, up 27% year-on-year
  • Indian equity benchmarks extended their recovery on Friday, with the Sensex rising 413.66 points to close at 74,729.27 and the Nifty 50 gaining 148.80 points to settle at 23,146.15. Information technology shares, including Tech Mahindra, Infosys and TCS, helped lift the indices
  • India defeated Zimbabwe by four wickets in the opening women's T20 International in Raipur, taking a 1–0 lead in the three-match series. Deepti Sharma and Niki Prasad combined in an 82-run stand after India's top order collapsed, helping the hosts chase down Zimbabwe's total of 114 for five
  • Indian wrestler Komal won bronze in the women's 59 kg category at the Under-23 World Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas, defeating Kazakhstan's Viktoriia Khusainova 7–2. Fellow Indian Amruta Pujari advanced to the women's 72 kg final after recording two pinfall victories
  • Indian shuttler Jagsher Singh Khangurra secured a bronze medal at the BWF World Junior Badminton Championships in Cairo
  • The Supreme Court of India upheld the Bombay High Court's decision quashing the 2020 write-off of ₹8,415 crore in additional tier-1 bonds issued by Yes Bank (Yes Bank). The court ruled that the bank's administrator lacked the authority to extinguish the bonds under the final reconstruction scheme, strengthening bondholders' claims
  • The Supreme Court issued notices to the Election Commission of India, Delhi Police and opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, in separate petitions concerning electoral-roll revision and protests held in Delhi on October 10–12. The court also directed the preservation of CCTV footage linked to allegations of police excesses
  • The Supreme Court ruled that a person converting from Hinduism to Islam cannot automatically claim backward-class reservation benefits in the new religious community solely on the basis of their previous caste status. The judgment upheld the Madras High Court's decision striking down a 2024 Tamil Nadu government order that permitted such certification for specified communities
  • The Election Commission of India ordered a Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls in 14 states and three Union Territories, using January 1, 2027, as the qualifying date for voter eligibility. The draft rolls are scheduled for publication on November 12, claims and objections will be accepted until December 11, and the final rolls are due on January 4, 2027
Delhi HC refuses to ban CJP's Tiranga rally at Central Park in Connaught Place today /////// Police says will control and regulate it /////// NDMC closes the park for the public on Friday and Saturday
oppn parties
VDAs Brought Under PMLA, Exchanges To Be Reporting Entities

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2023-03-09 06:24:39

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

In a move to bring India's crypto regulations at par with the worldwide trend, the government issued a gazette notification on Tuesday to bring virtual digital asset transactions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) defines a virtual asset as "a digital representation of value that can be digitally traded, transferred and used for payment or investment purposes." FATF sets international standards aimed at preventing money laundering and terrorist financing. India's latest move is in line with FATF recommendations.

Henceforth, "exchange between virtual digital assets and fiat currencies, exchange between one or more forms of virtual digital assets, transfer of virtual digital assets (VDA), safekeeping or administration of virtual digital assets or instruments enabling control over virtual digital assets and participation in and provision of financial services related to an issuer's offer and sale of a virtual digital asset" will now be covered under PMLA, as per the gazette notification.

Further, all entities or exchanges dealing in VDAs will now act as reporting entities under PMLA. This means that like banks, financial institutions including stock brokers as well as real estate and jewellery sectors and casinos, entities dealing in VDAs will now have to maintain a record of all transactions, ensure that all their customers and users, registered or one-time, are KYC compliant and report all suspicious activity to the Financial Intelligence Unit India. The government has also said that it will penalise or even shut down entities dealing in VDAs if they do not comply with the latest changes.

Given the fact that crypto affords anonymity and can be used for financial fraud, tax evasion, moving money from one country to another, terror funding activities and for a host of other illegal financial activities not possible through legal financial channels, this move on part of the government is welcome. It means that those who use crypto can no longer use it for illegal activities as they have to provide their credentials and the transactions can be reported and traced.

Although India has not made crypto legal yet, it has slapped a 30% tax on all income from dealing in VDAs and has also prescribed deduction of 1% TDS on all transaction to ensure that they do not escape the tax net. This latest move will further tighten the grip on VDA transactions to ensure that individuals or entities do not use it for illegal activities.