Crypto ban would move India closer to an authoritarian nightmare

Jairaj Devadiga is an India-based economist specializing in public policy and economic history.

The Indian government is planning to ban private cryptocurrencies. According to Reuters, the planned legislation will impose a "general prohibition on all activities by any individual on mining, generating, holding, selling, (or) dealing" in digital currencies as a "medium of exchange, store of value and a unit of account."