India Potentially Imitating China’s Focus on Blockchain Over Bitcoin

China has been steadfast in banning ICOs, blocking access to exchanges, and even putting up the ‘Great Firewall.’ India has flirted with the idea of banning cryptocurrencies but has fallen just short, choosing instead to cut banking to any companies that work with the digital assets. However, while both these countries have been strongly anti-Bitcoin, it is India that has gotten a bad rap for doing so as its blockchain drive was never as impressive as China’s. That, however, could be changing as Sanjay Dhotre, minister of State for Electronics and IT (MeitY), has now said that: “Blockchain Technology is one of the important research areas having application potential in different domains such as Governance, Banking and Finance, Cyber Security and so on.”

India Building Towards Blockchain

Blockchain’s usage at a high-grade enterprise level is being released across the globe, with many major enterprises and governments appreciating its potential – including China, which is probably at the forefront of blockchain adoption. It is unsurprising that India is also a nation looking to ramp up its blockchain adoption, but it still feels clear that they will be avoiding the decentralized cryptocurrency ecosystem that is one facet of it. Dhotre said that: “Considering the potential of Blockchain Technology and the need for shared infrastructure for different use cases, an approach paper on National Level Blockchain Framework is being prepared…” giving insight to a much bigger drive by the national government to be a part of the blockchain revolution.

Already in the Pilot Stage

India has not exactly been sitting on its laurels until now with regard to blockchain. There are a number of instances where governmental organizations have already delved into the technology. In fact, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which cracked down on Bitcoin, has said it is developing a banking platform built on blockchain as part of its R&D branch. More so, MeitY has been supporting a multi-institutional project – the Distributed Centre of Excellence in Blockchain Technology with The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), The Institute for Development & Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT) and others working as executing agencies. So, while India may not be moving as far along with blockchain technology as China, it is certainly choosing to progress with the technology and happily leave behind the cryptocurrency aspect. It remains to be seen if these types of nations can thrive with the base technology without leveraging the more decentralized financial aspects, but if it is possible, the two Asian countries will be well placed for the fourth industrial revolution.

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