India Keeps Quiet on ICOs So Far, Focuses on Cryptocurrency Misuse

India has not yet responded to China’s sudden ICO ban, with lawmakers continuing to focus on “misuse” of cryptocurrencies in general.

As part of an ongoing examination of cryptocurrency regulation, the country’s central bank told a government panel Monday that such currencies are “susceptible” to criminal activity.

“It is true that while virtual currencies may have legitimate uses, some of their characteristics like anonymity make them susceptible to misuse or abuse,” the Reserve Bank of India reports, quoted by multiple local news outlets.

China’s heavy-handed approach to ICO control has yet to find company among major economies, with even Hong Kong choosing to follow a similar approach to that of the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

India’s legislative noises have focused significantly on the use of virtual currencies such as Bitcoin for illegitimate means, and its ostensibly doomed cash reforms also sought to squeeze out “black money” from the economy.

While regulation may be on the horizon for Bitcoin, however, digital tokens continue to exist in a gray area.

Consumers are more than aware of the profit potential, with altcoin and ICO trading forming the topic of a mainstream media piece published Wednesday.

“Around April-May this year I got introduced to cryptocurrency and after researching a bit I decided to invest in a couple of ICOs like Humaniq and TaaS. They gave me around 6x to 8x growth,” one dedicated amateur trader told Factor Daily.