RBI Urges Indian Policymakers to Restrict Crypto Banking Access

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has submitted recommendations to Indian policymakers to restrict cryptocurrency access in the banking sector. In a recent meeting with the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, RBI's Deputy Governor Rohit Jain and Executive Director P. Vasudevan urged lawmakers to prevent use of cryptocurrencies and privately owned stablecoins in the banking system.

The RBI expressed concerns that imposing conventional financial standards on cryptocurrencies could create a false sense of security for investors. The central bank emphasized the need to distinguish between cryptocurrency assets and tokenized government securities or corporate bonds, highlighting potential regulatory issues with tokenization.

India has been a leader in cryptocurrency adoption, ranking highest in the Global Crypto Adoption Index published by Chainalysis in 2025. However, the RBI's stance on cryptocurrencies is not new, having previously imposed restrictions on banks providing services to crypto entities and exchanges in 2018. The Supreme Court later overturned this decision, allowing crypto exchanges to operate.