Crypto Brain Drain in India is Absolutely Crazy, Says Polygon Co-Founder

Sandeep Nailwal – CEO and Co-Founder of Polygon – sees massive chaos reigning in the Indian cryptocurrency market. In his view, this disorder causes thousands of developers, investors, and entrepreneurs to leave to countries with more friendly regulatory frameworks.

The Uncertainty Causes a Crypto’ Brain Drain’

It is safe to say that India’s digital asset environment is controversial. On one hand, the country has millions of crypto investors, some of whom have even swapped their strategies from gold to bitcoin. On the other, the government and the nation’s financial watchdogs contemplate how to approach the industry for years, causing uncertainty in the process.

At some point, the authorities wanted to criminalize the usage of bitcoin and other digital currencies. In November 2021, they reiterated these plans, proposing a China-like ban on the industry. Shortly after, though, the officials changed their stance, insisting that regulation would be a better step than a blanket ban.

Regardless of their final decision, Polygon’s Co-Founder – Sandeep Nailwal – argued that this uncertainty causes many Indian developers, investors, and entrepreneurs to leave their homeland and settle in other countries with established rules.

The exec outlined he wants to live in India and keep developing his blockchain protocol. Nonetheless, the situation there is highly unfavorable for such progress:

“Overall, the way the regulatory uncertainty is there and how big Polygon has become, it doesn’t make sense for us or for any team to expose their protocols to local risks.”

It is worth noting that implementing appropriate rules in space could turn India into a crypto powerhouse. The nation has a population of 1.4 billion people, as many of them are young with considerable knowledge about tech. Moreover, India has the second-highest crypto adoption rate behind Vietnam.

India’s Central Bank is in Favor of CBDC

While the authorities’ viewpoint on bitcoin and altcoins is rather negative, that’s not the case with central bank digital currencies.

The second-most populated nation has intentions to roll out an e-rupee last year. The Reserve Bank of India announced it would launch trial programs to examine how the financial product would interact with the local monetary system.

Nirmala Sitharaman – Finance Minister of the country – praised the efforts and predicted that using the CBDC will give a “big boost” to the local economy.

India’s PM – Narendra Modi – is also keen on the idea. He thinks that the digital rupee will make online payments faster and more secure. Additionally, they could revolutionize the fintech sector by creating new opportunities and strengthening the global economy.