The Union Budget 2026–27 is round the corner. Indian enterprises and businesses across sectors are focusing on how fiscal policy should unlock growth in blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystems. Years of regulatory ambiguity and an unsupportive tax regime have been deterrents to innovation and liquidity. Businesses hope the upcoming budget will balance incentives with risk management to help the digital economy.
In fact, the virtual digital assets (VDA) sector as well as the blockchain-related enterprises have been persistently calling for tax reforms, regulatory frameworks, as well as industry-friendly policy. Stakeholders argue these steps are essential not only for attracting investment but also for bringing offshore innovation onshore. Clear frameworks around tokenization services, blockchain solutions, and decentralized finance (DeFi) could make India a competitive hub rather than being viewed as a region where innovators operate in regulatory gray zones.
“Budget 2026 presents an opportunity for India to signal its ambition of becoming a future-ready digital economy by aligning regulation with innovation-led growth. Rationalising the existing 30% tax on virtual digital assets and revisiting the 1% TDS by reducing it to a more practical level such as 0.1% would help bring users back into the regulated domestic ecosystem, improve compliance, and support stronger market liquidity. A balanced and progressive tax framework would incentivise long-term participation over short-term speculative activity, strengthen transparency, and enhance investor confidence. As global markets increasingly adopt differentiated and pragmatic approaches to crypto taxation, it is important for India to remain competitive and innovation-friendly. A supportive and forward-looking policy environment can accelerate Web3 innovation, foster blockchain-based entrepreneurship, generate high-quality jobs, and firmly position India as a global hub for digital assets and next-generation financial technologies,” says Vikas Gupta, Country Manager – India, Bybit.Clear regulatory frameworks for blockchain tech and cryptoA top expectation is regulatory clarity. Whilst the government has introduced taxation measures for cryptocurrency, the legal and operational framework remains ambiguous and unclear. Many enterprises say that without clear guidelines on how various classes of digital assets will be treated under financial regulations, compliance burden will stifle innovation. Businesses are keen on a structured policy that distinguishes between blockchain technology as an enterprise use case and speculative crypto assets, helping companies confidently build blockchain-based products and services without worrying about legal uncertainties.
Short-term tax incentives and long-term structural support need of the hour
SB Seker, Head of APAC, Binance outlines his perspective on how India should approach crypto and blockchain policy in the upcoming budget.
“India’s rapid adoption of blockchain and virtual digital assets (VDA) reflects both the scale of its digital economy and growing participation by retail users. The forthcoming budget presents an opportunity to strengthen the VDA ecosystem through measured regulatory and tax refinements that protect users, maintain financial stability, and support responsible market development. From a tax perspective, a pragmatic framework focused on capital gains realised, with provisions for limited loss set off and removal on transaction level levies in favour of net-revenue generating corporate taxes instead, can improve fairness for retail participants and indicate to them India has moved past the tax-and-deter regime towards a fuller license-and-supervise one,” says Seker.
In particular, enterprises are looking beyond short-term tax tweaks and want long-term structural support: regulatory certainty on digital assets, rationalized taxation to improve domestic participation, and government-led initiatives that promote enterprise adoption of blockchain for supply chain, identity management, and financial services. The next budget is seen as a pivotal policy moment that could catalyze investment, innovation, and confidence in a space long perceived as promising but under-supported.
Clear, consistent operating standards for VDA platforms, aligned with India’s AML/KYC and investor protection priorities, will encourage responsible capital investment, create skilled jobs, and build domestic capabilities. India’s approach to blockchain governance, combined with its digital public infrastructure, provides a foundation to integrate innovation with transparency, financial inclusion, and economic growth objectives. A balanced regulatory environment that safeguards users, supports innovation, and ensures predictable taxation will help India convert participation into economic value.
“We expect the government to provide additional leadership on the regulatory side of the crypto industry with respect to the upcoming 2026 budget. Specifically, we are looking forward to a dedicated Crypto Bill as well as alignment of SEBI guidelines for companies that hold BTC on their balance sheets. In addition, we would expect some type of reasonable tax rationalization under an appropriate regulatory framework for crypto. We also see a very positive economic impact of revisiting the implementation of the 1% TDS alongside the 30% capital gains tax, more specifically to allow for increased liquidity, continued innovation, and to allow for continued oversight of the space,” says Abhay Agarwal, Founder at Getbit (a Bitcoin-only app)
The way forward for India’s blockchain and crypto ecosystem
Implementing these types of changes would keep capital in India, allow for rapid growth of the country’s capabilities in innovation, and give India a great opportunity to take on the role of a thoughtful and responsible leader of the emerging digital asset economy – and create immense wealth for millions of individuals. India currently has over 100 million crypto users, making it the fastest growing user base in the world. This growing user base, combined with increased regulation and policy clarity around crypto, has produced an active digital asset economy that is already growing faster than other countries around the world. As such, there are many positive indicators that the crypto space will continue to grow in India.
For Indian enterprises, the Union Budget will be a policy statement on how serious India is about embracing blockchain tech as well as digital assets as drivers of economic growth. A rationalized tax treatment, clear and unambiguous regulation, targeted incentives, as well as infrastructure support could collectively attract investment, strengthen confidence, and propel the digital economy. Enterprises are watching the Union Budget closely and hoping this will be the year blockchain technology and crypto are able to move from ambiguity to mainstream enterprise adoption.
