Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra stated on Twitter that people may soon be able to buy Mahindra automobiles with Bitcoin, indicating a potential future where people in India can purchase cars with cryptocurrencies. The Mahindra Group of companies is more inclined towards crypto and blockchain, with Tech Mahindra entering the blockchain and metaverse space, and Kotak Mahindra Bank becoming one of the first banks to open its doors to the crypto market in India. Anand Mahindra was previously rumored to have invested millions in Bitcoin, but he denied the reports, stating that he hasn't invested a single rupee in cryptocurrencies.

India's finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, has said that the country could buy Russian crude oil at or above the price cap imposed by the G-7 if the recent OPEC+ output cut increases energy costs. She added that India will look for "affordable prices" to serve its large population. Sitharaman also discussed India's economic challenges, including weakness in demand for manufacturing goods and services activity that could be a drag on India's recovery, and the lack of progress on privatization. She said that the government hopes to continue on the fiscal glide path and that the Reserve Bank of India has found reasonable justification to pause for now. On the topic of cryptocurrencies, she said more reports show that cryptocurrencies have macro-stability implications, if there's a consensus among G-20 members, "we will look at a broad framework and will leave it to each country to adopt their own legislative framework".

Twitter users will be able to access stocks, cryptocurrencies and other financial assets through a partnership with eToro, a social trading company.

Indian venture fund pi Ventures has secured INR 100 crore ($12m) or 15% of the corpus out of the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) managed by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI). This comes after the company's announcement of an investment of INR 22 crore from Belgium's Colruyt Group in its second fund. pi Ventures has committed to seven startups so far and plans to invest in 20-25 such startups in the coming two to three years, focusing on seed/pre-Series A/Series A investments in startups focused on disruptive artificial intelligence (AI) and other forms of deep tech.

There has been a gradual but steady adoption of Cryptocurrency in India. Younger generation from smaller, less developed cities are increasingly investing in Cryptocurrency.

Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has emphasized the importance of developing a common framework for crypto regulation across all countries, given the "so many collapses and shocks" in the industry. She discussed the topic of cryptocurrency regulation at the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meetings, which are taking place during her visit to the US for the Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund. India's central bank has recommended a ban on all cryptocurrencies, but the government has stated that both regulating and banning them would require global collaboration. The government has requested the IMF and FSB to prepare a synthesis paper on crypto assets. (Bitcoin.com)

The G20 is planning to develop a common framework to help all countries deal with risks associated with cryptocurrency investments. India's finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, called for coordinated global crypto policies, highlighting the numerous crypto collapses and the need for a coordinated effort from all jurisdictions. India's G20 presidency will end on November 30, 2023, leaving roughly seven months for the group of 20 nations to carve out blanket crypto reforms that could be implemented across jurisdictions. Meanwhile, India's home-grown payment network, the unified payments interface (UPI), is expanding globally, with Singapore's PayNow rapid payment system integrating UPI to allow swift cross-border payments.

Crypto regulation is an important topic of discussion at the G20 meetings in Washington, DC, under India's presidency, according to Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. India aims to develop a common regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies and deal with associated risks. Sitharaman will hold a high-level meeting with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to discuss mutual interests. India will also co-chair the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable with the IMF and the World Bank on April 12, focusing on the global debt landscape and debt restructuring challenges. On April 14, a high-level seminar on the macro-financial implications of crypto assets will be held.

In the wake of India’s recent experimental projects with the central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), latest reports suggest the country has an ambitious target with regard to domestic payments. The country’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), initiated a pilot project on usage of CBDCs for retail and wholesale use. The authorities recently said the CBDCs could potentially offer benefits like financial inclusion and improved payment systems. In a latest, the plans for CBDC adoption in the country could be expanded for a wider usage.

India's retail central bank digital currency (CBDC-R) architects are aiming to scale the use of the digital rupee to one million users, according to sources. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is running both retail and wholesale CBDC pilots, with the retail CBDC pilot active in at least 15 cities with over 13 banks participating. The RBI is hoping to conduct offline transactions by testing the use of wearables, cards like debit and credit, bluetooth technology, and a smartphone, with more than 50 proposals submitted to the RBI to solve the problem of offline transactions. The RBI has not announced a timeline for rolling out a full-scale retail CBDC but has previously indicated it was aiming for the end of the year.