RBI Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar also dissed various definitions of crypto devised by its proponents, and said crypto is not a currency, asset or a commodity.
Comparing cryptocurrencies to a ponzi scheme, the Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar said it is “most-advisable” for India to ban crypto assets. Crypto has no intrinsic value and in fact, functions like a gambling contract, Rabi Sankar said at an event on Monday. He also dissed various definitions of crypto devised by its proponents, and said crypto is not a currency, asset or a commodity.
“As a store of value, cryptocurrencies like bitcoin have given impressive returns so far, but so did tulips in 17th century Netherlands. Cryptocurrencies are very much like a speculative or gambling contract working like a Ponzi scheme. In fact, it has been argued that the original scheme devised by Charles Ponzi in 1920 is better than cryptocurrencies from a social perspective . Even Ponzi schemes invest in income earning assets,” Rabi Sankar said.
The deputy governor’s comments come days after the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das warned crypto investors to be wary of it and said that investing in crypto is even worse than Tulipmania, as it does not even have an underlying value.Tulipmania of the 17th century is one of the most infamous bubbles. At that time, prices of tulip bulbs soared higher than the annual income of skilled workers.
Deputy Governor Rabi Sankar, who was appointed to the…
