Facebook's investment in Jio might pave way for crypto in India

Experts see this as an opportunity for both companies to tap into the digital payments market while also promoting blockchain innovation in India, according to LiveMint. Reliance Jio Infocomm has already pledged to develop a large blockchain network. Back in 2019, the company made an official statement that it plans to install a pan-India blockchain network for industries.

The Facebook-Jio deal could pave the way for the growth of cryptocurrencies in India driven by the former’s own digital currency Libra. In June 2019, a group of companies joined Facebook to create an open-source cryptocurrency Libra, which could potentially be used as a payment option in applications such as Messenger and WhatsApp.

Currently, Libra is in the process of seeking regulatory approvals in different parts of the world including in the US and Europe. Overall, it is too soon to say if it will be launched in India, even as the Supreme Court has lifted the Reserve bank of India (RBI)’s ban on virtual currencies, the online publication concluded.