🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

India’s complex crypto laws create GoSats’s unique opportunity

• GoSats works within an Indian rule set that treats cryptocurrencies as “virtual digital assets” (VDAs) rather than legal tender 1.
• After India’s Supreme Court overturned an earlier banking ban in 2020, the tax rules set a flat 30% levy on gains from VDA transfers plus a 1% tax deducted at source 1.
• Under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (a law aimed at preventing and tracking illicit money flows), crypto exchanges, custodial wallet providers, and some intermediaries that facilitate VDA transactions count as “reporting entities.” They must register with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU-IND, India’s financial-crime monitoring agency) and run customer due diligence 2.
• These layers of compliance can make direct crypto payments hard to run, while leaving room for reward products that bring users into the asset class within a compliant setup.

Crypto rewards and fintech cards as a bridge to the mainstream

• Investor backing implies some firms see crypto’s value moving past speculation into customer acquisition and loyalty as the market matures.
• By tying bitcoin and gold rewards to everyday spending, GoSats reduces the entry hurdle for new crypto users, who can build holdings without going through an exchange 3.
• That approach puts pressure on classic loyalty schemes, since they now compete with an asset class that may rise in value for consumer attention.
• A startup launch of a branded card tracks the spread of Credit-Cards-as-a-Service (CCaaS) platforms, which run the back-end so fintechs can focus on what sets their product apart 4.