Debt distress, taxation, crypto regulation to be focus during India’s G20 presidency

Issues such as global policies, taxation and debt distress will be the focus for India as it gears up to assume the presidency for Group of 20 (G20) countries in December, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. While delivering a keynote address at an event hosted by the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) on the upcoming G20 Conference,  Sitharaman also said that framing crypto assets would also be given priority.

The Finance Minister also underlined the need for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Financial Stability Board (FSB), Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and other such organisation to understand how crypto assets can be regulated. She said that all countries need to be “on board.”

“No one single country can succeed individually, being in a silo, trying to regulate the crypto assets…we need to have all the members of the G20 first of all to come on board to see how best it can be done,” she said.

“I know work has been done by FSB, OECD, IMF, and also the BIS (Bank of International Settlements). So we’ll have to bring all of them together and then put it on the table for the members to have a meaningful conversation on it,” she added.

Noting that the G-20 members have proved that they can bring a consensus on contentious issues like taxation, she said that development goals must be achieved in a sustainable manner.

“Development goals must be achieved in a sustainable manner. The way in which development is financed should not trap a country,” Sitharaman said.

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