A member of the Indian Parliament said crypto is similar to gambling and should be taxed at a high rate such as 50%. He stressed that we must discourage and disincentivize trading and investment in this asset class.
Indian Parliament Member Wants Crypto Taxed at 50%
Sushil Kumar Modi, an Indian parliament member, shared his views on cryptocurrency in an interview published Tuesday by Forkast. Modi is a Rajya Sabha member, India’s upper house.
Recently, he made headlines by urging the Indian government to impose more that 30% tax on cryptocurrency income before Rajya Sabha passed Finance Bill 2022. According to him, the Indian government should tax crypto-income as high as 50%.
Modi explained:
It is not clear that crypto is gambling. It’s like gambling, it’s like playing lottery, it’s like horse racing, and the tax rates for all of these are extremely high.
Modi suggested that the total crypto transaction value be subject to 28% goods & services tax (GST). Instead of 18% GST, Modi wanted to tax crypto income at half the rate. Modi stated that the GST should apply to all transactions, including gambling, horse racing and casino.
The parliamentarian then compared crypto investments to traditional investments. He pointed out that although stocks are backed by companies, no one knows who the source of these cryptos. The lawmaker stressed that it was important to discourage and discourage trading and investment in this asset class.
He said that the Indian government was working on crypto legislation. The Indian government must decide in the near future if crypto is an asset or commodity, a stock or a good, as well as whether it is a service, a good, a product, or a commodity. He noted that the Indian government should discuss crypto legislation with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
The Indian government should not rush and should prepare a consultation paper.
Modi clarified that crypto assets could be regulated but dismissed the possibility of the Indian government adopting bitcoin as legal tender. He detailed:
One thing is certain, India’s government is not going to legalize crypto like El Salvador and Ukraine. It will not be considered a fiat currency or legal tender.
He stated that cryptos were not good for any country’s financial stability. “Only countries with unstable finances are these tenders legalized.” El Salvador adopted bitcoin last September as a legal tender. After the Russian invasion, Ukraine’s president has signed the law “On Virtual Assets”.
Modi commented on the topic of online gambling and India’s multi-billion-dollar fantasy gaming industry.
Rajya Sabha member expected to see strict regulations in India for cryptocurrency. He stated that the government wanted to make crypto-investors’ lives miserable. This is the bottom line. This is the core of the tax.
