Overview
- Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Chadha proposed dedicated legislation and a supervised sandbox to test models for dividing assets like real estate, infrastructure and intellectual property into digital units.
- He framed the measure as financial inclusion for the middle class, likening its potential impact to UPI’s expansion of everyday digital payments.
- Industry voices, including India Blockchain Alliance’s Raj Kapoor, called a tailored law a strategic necessity to align tokens with securities and contract rules and to prevent value migrating offshore via SPVs.
- Global momentum was cited, with references to SEC-aligned pathways, Singapore’s Project Guardian, EU MiCA, UAE VARA, and initiatives by BlackRock, Franklin Templeton and major banks.
- The proposal’s path remains unclear as the central government has not indicated support and SEBI has not set out a framework, with current Indian pilots limited and regulators emphasizing investor protection and settlement risks.