Even as various stakeholders including the government, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), startups, investors and industry officials are concerned about the future of cryptocurrencies in India, who KV Kamath said he is skeptical about cryptos and offerings. 'Didn't see much value in wealth.

"I repeat what the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India is saying that as a banker, I don't see any value in this asset (crytos) so I am calm... I doubt it," Kamath said, while responding to a question after a heated discussion at the Morningstar Investment Conference in Mumbai.

The banker is a former chairman of the National Bank for Infrastructure Development (NaBFID), a development finance company. Last year, in October, the government appointed Kamath as the chairman of the development finance firm NaBFID as part of its efforts to invest in the infrastructure sector.

The company was established with an initial capital of Rs 20,000 crore. The former head of ICICI Bank went on to say that although he is suspicious of cryptocurrencies, the digital currency of the central bank must be done.

“Central Bank Digital Currency must happen. Cryptocurrency, I'm not sure," he said.

Incidentally, Kamath's statement comes even as the federal government is finalizing its views on cryptocurrencies to submit its response to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Mutual Evaluation by early 2023. The FATF report is a review of the measures countries are taking to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

Kamath, however, believes that cryptos and blockchain should not be treated together and the latter can also help improve the payment system. "I keep hearing about crypto and blockchain. For me as an engineer, they are not on the same continuum. Blockchain is another thing that can be used... payment processing will happen. If blockchain will provide it, that's fine, Kamath said.
Source: BusinessToday