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Suril N. Desai is a commentator on India’s crypto policy and a vocal advocate for Bitcoin and self-custody. His view is that banks should earn people’s trust through service and accountability, and that regulation should protect citizens while allowing them meaningful alternatives.
In this Bitnxt Founder and Leader Interview Series Q&A, he examines India’s crypto tax regime, RBI powers, the e-rupee and UPI, token launches, and the industry’s own failures.
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Q1.If you could rewrite one clause of India’s crypto tax regime tomorrow, which would it be — the 30% flat tax, the 1% TDS, or the ban on setting off losses — and why that one?
I would cut the 1% TDS to 0.01%. It repeatedly locks up capital, even on losing trades. A later tax credit does not repair today’s cash-flow damage. The state already has reporting tools. It should collect information without choking liquidity and making compliance commercially punishing.
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Q2.Estimates suggest roughly 70% of Indian crypto trading volume now happens offshore. Has the current regime protected investors, or simply exported them?
Investor protection cannot be measured by how much business disappears from India. The 70% estimate needs verification, but offshore migration is documented. When users move beyond effective local recourse, risk survives and domestic accountability weakens. I call that a policy failure dressed up as caution.
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Q3.The RBI has reportedly leaned towards prohibition and pushed for banks to be walled off from crypto. How far can it realistically go?
RBI’s powers are subject to law and judicial review. The 2020 judgment demonstrated that by setting aside its banking restriction. Cutting off banking can strangle a business without banning it on paper. Any fresh restriction needs a lawful basis and must survive constitutional scrutiny; regulatory discomfort is not enough.
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Q4.India still has no dedicated crypto law, yet exchanges must register with FIU-IND and follow PMLA. Is this “regulation by enforcement” workable long-term?
The state knows how to collect the tax and demand the data. Customers still need clarity about who safeguards their assets and what happens after an exchange fails. PMLA compliance matters, but it cannot substitute for a complete framework. Permanent uncertainty is a cost imposed on every serious builder.
More: https://bitnxt.io/interviews/suril-desai-nishith-desai-associates