Crypto and AI Need Global Regulations, Says India’s Prime Minister

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for a global framework on cryptocurrency, artificial intelligence, and other emerging technologies. 

Days ahead of the G20 summit scheduled to begin September 8 in New Delhi, Modi was asked in a recent interview with Business Today about a potential worldwide framework for regulating cryptocurrencies.

“Not only crypto, but all emerging technologies need a global framework and regulations,” he replied.

Emerging technologies also draws under its umbrella AI, especially as experts and authorities around the world continue to decry the possible threats it poses.

As India currently presides over the 2023 G20 summit, Modi noted that they are “taking huge leaps in the fields of AI and DPI [digital public infrastructure].”

According to India’s leader, however, the rules and regulations “should not belong to one country or a group of countries.”

Highlighting the needs of the Global South, a term that collectively refers to emerging economies, the prime minister emphasized that the current discussion surrounding cryptocurrencies has had the group front of mind. 

“India’s G20 presidency expanded the crypto conversation beyond financial stability to consider its broader macroeconomic implications, especially for emerging markets and developing economies,” he said. 

The Group of Twenty (G20) is made up of 19 nations and the European Union. According to its website, it represents roughly 85% of the global GDP, over 75% of global trade, and around two-thirds of the world’s population. 

The Indian subcontinent has been unwaveringly anti-crypto over the past years. The governor of the Central Bank of India has stated crypto is a “big threat” to the global financial system, along with stiff tax impositions on crypto income. 

Even so, the nation has not shied away from developing its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), the so-called E-Rupee. Its pilot program, which began in October 2022, has reportedly invited more institutions to take part.