Indian crypto exchanges launch anti-ban campaign

India’s crypto exchanges have launched a campaign to persuade the government to regulate private digital assets rather than impose an outright ban. 

Under the #IndiaWantsBitcoin campaign, the exchanges have launched websites – indiawantscrypto.net and indiawantsbitcoin.org – to help Indian citizens email their representatives at the Lok Sabha (the lower house of parliament) asking for positive and progressive regulation of the crypto markets, Coindesk reports. 

The campaign has been launched in response to the government’s plan to table the “Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill 2021,” which would potentially prompt the development of a digital rupee while banning “private cryptocurrencies.” It is not yet clear exactly what the bill means for cryptos like bitcoin, but the industry is worried.

The campaign is being run across various social media platforms, with supporters tagging friends and urging them to help stop the ban. 

“Within one day, over 10,000 emails have been sent via indiawantscrypto.net from all parts of the country,” Nischal Shetty, CEO of the Binance-owned WazirX exchange, told CoinDesk. “It’s a critical moment, and all eyes are on India to find out if we’re for or against innovation.”