$2.5T Crypto market won’t wait for nations to onboard: WazirX CEO Shetty
CEO of Indian crypto exchange WazirX, Nischal Shetty, has said he envisions a race between countries for launching their local versions of central bank digital currencies in 2022.
Shetty said in an interview with the Cointelegraph that the year 2022 holds potential for being an extension of the ongoing discussions around exchange-traded funds (ETF), crypto regulations, and the emergence of the metaverse.
He stated that the crypto community is optimistic that they would get regulatory clarity and see institutional participation fueling retail adoption. They also expect seeing “more metaverse projects making an entrance.”
The CEO has also pointed out that the cryptocurrency industry today — directly or indirectly — employs roughly 50,000 people in India. According to research from Nasscom research, the employability numbers are expected to grow two times faster, with the crypto industry having the potential to create over 800,000 jobs by 2030.
Shetty acknowledged the delays in crypto regulations internationally, and highlighted that an “overnight regulation” might harm the progress of the crypto ecosystem, leaving open loopholes for bad actors to exploit.
He said that currently, there is a $2.5-trillion market, and it won’t wait for any nation to come on board. He has consistently been tweeting ‘#IndiaWantsCrypto’ for over 1000 days now with the sole objective of encouraging crypto regulation in India.
Discussions around cryptocurrencies had been prevalent in India this year as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman citing the urgent need for crypto regulations.
In addition, the winter season of the Indian Parliament has also introduced a crypto bill that sought a ban on “private” cryptocurrencies, but due to unclear terminologies, the bill has received mixed reactions from the Indian crypto sector.
Shetty outlined that the question for every nation right now is, “Do they want to participate and get a share of this pie?”
He has also predicted that global participation in crypto would peak from 150 million to 400 million people if 2021 follows a similar growth trajectory as the year 2021, further underscoring that nonfungible token (NFT) buying spree “might slow down” in 2022 as investors are attempting to resell through secondary markets.
He added that Web3 would open the gates to innovation and more startups in India, and with the increasing popularity of NFTs, they are likely to play “a huge role in promoting the creator economy of India.”
The CEO of WazirX has also been known to have led numerous marketing efforts for educating Indian investors about cryptocurrencies, as well as for launching transparency reports and policies in order to add credibility to the crypto ecosystem.
Shetty opines that spreading the right information as well as busting misinformation will expedite crypto adoption in India.
For the Cointelegraph interview, he said that it is doing “a phenomenal job” at spreading education and awareness around cryptocurrencies among the masses. He wished its readers a “very happy, crypto-full new year ahead!”
Local reports from news channels in India from early December have suggested that the Indian government is preparing to regulate the crypto sector instead of imposing an outright ban.
According to Indian news channel NDTV, a cabinet note regarding the proposed crypto bill had been accessed that contained suggestions for regulation of cryptocurrencies as crypto assets, with the Securities and Exchange Board of India overseeing the regulation of local crypto exchanges.
However, NDTV reporter Sunil Prabhu has said that the government of India would not consider mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies as legal tender anytime soon.
Prabhu had been recorded saying that cryptocurrency as a legal tender “will not be accepted” as it is “a clear no.” He added that what the prime minister in his deliberations at the meeting made had been “absolutely clear”, ensuring that does not take place.
