Local exchanges in India are encouraging residents to purchase and give Bitcoin during the upcoming holiday season.
To mark the festive season in India, cryptocurrency exchanges are courting retail traders with aggressive marketing campaigns and free crypto giveaways.
For this year’s Hindu holiday season, which began on Sept. 10, cryptocurrency exchanges are encouraging citizens to give Bitcoin as a gift rather than gold, as is customary at this time of year.
According to Sathvik Vishwanath, co-founder of popular cryptocurrency exchange Unocoin, if approached properly, “Bitcoin and gift vouchers can be an interesting option for users to consider as increased awareness activity is expected across the industry.
“The exchange has partnered with e-commerce websites to enable customers to purchase Bitcoin-based prepaid gift vouchers for online shopping.WazirX, a competitor exchange with a number of product launches scheduled for this month, is also focusing on crypto gifting during the holiday season.“
Crypto gifting is on our product roadmap,” said Rajagopal Menon, the exchange’s vice president of marketing. WazirX increased its employee base from 50 to more than 200 this year, with plans to expand further during the festive season.
The marketing moves come at a time when regulatory clarity remains a problem in India, as legislators continue to delay enacting legislation. However, there may be some hope at the end of the tunnel, as new legislation is being drafted.
Jayant Sinha, Chairman of India’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, stated last week at a virtual blockchain summit that the country’s upcoming crypto regulations will not be like those in El Salvador.
However, it will be dominated by national security concerns, attempting to strike a balance between stability and growth.
Sinha also expressed concern about the potential for cryptocurrency assets to be misused for money laundering and terrorism financing.
Former Reserve Bank of India deputy governor Rama Gandhi spoke at the same event, urging lawmakers to provide clarity on the asset class. Additionally, he stated that cryptocurrencies should be considered assets or commodities rather than currencies.
