The cryptocurrency markets in India recovered after falling by over 20 per cent in the early morning on Wednesday after the news that the government may present a bill in the parliament to ban most digital currencies in India.
Most well-known cryptocurrencies at the time of writing the article were trading 8-12 per cent lower than 24 hours ago. Bitcoin prices fell by Rs 5 lakh, or 12 per cent, in the past 24 hours. Bitcoin was trading around Rs 40 lakh level at the time of writing this article. Early morning, Bitcoin prices had fallen to Rs 34.23 lakh levels before recovering some losses to trade around Rs 40 lakh levels.
Ethereum was trading at Rs 3 lakh after losing 9 per cent in the past 24 hours. Another popular cryptocurrency which is known for sharp movements - Shibu Inu - had fallen by almost 19 per cent in the past 24 hours.
The government is going to table the Cryptocurrency Bill in the winter session of parliament. The bill seeks to "create a facilitative framework for creation of the official digital currency to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India".
However, the Bill also seeks to prohibit all private cryptocurrencies in India. It also allows for certain exceptions to promote the underlying technology of cryptocurrency and its uses.
The news has led to widespread panic among investors, many of whom rushed to pull-out their investments. As per reports, websites and apps of some crypto exchanges crashed after the reports of the bill became viral.