UK says India needs to co-operate with Canada investigation into murder of top Sikh activist

Published

7 months ago

October 16, 2024

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The UK has said India needs to co-operate with Canada’s investigation into the murder of a Sikh leader in British Columbia – after the two countries expelled each other’s diplomats over the issue.

Tensions between India and Canada, nominally friends, have been strained since Canadian citizen and prominent Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar was gunned down in his car by masked men as he left a Sikh temple in Surrey, BC, in June 2023.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in September last year there were “credible allegations” the Indian government was linked to the assassination.

India rejected the accusation as “absurd” and told Canada to remove 41 of its 62 diplomats from the country.

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Canada is home to about 770,000 Sikhs, the largest Sikh diaspora outside Punjab. Delhi has criticised Ottawa over the years for failing to oppose the pro-Khalistan movement, which calls for a separate Sikh state in India.

On Monday, tensions ramped up further as Canada expelled six senior Indian diplomats, including the high commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma, after police uncovered evidence of ongoing violent criminal activity linked to India’s government, according to a senior Canadian government official.

India then ordered the expulsion of six Canadian diplomats, and said it was withdrawing Mr Verma. India’s ministry of external affairs said it had “no faith in the current Canadian government’s commitment to ensure their security”.

The tensions place the UK somewhat in the middle, with India and Canada both part of the Commonwealth, the UK and Canada in the G7 and NATO and the UK and India sharing a defence partnership and a possible free trade deal.

On Monday, Sir Keir Starmer and Mr Trudeau spoke to each other over the phone where they discussed “recent developments regarding allegations under investigation in Canada”, Downing Street said.

The Foreign Office has now said: “We are in contact with our Canadian partners about the serious developments outlined in the independent investigations in Canada.

“The UK has full confidence in Canada’s judicial system. Respect for sovereignty and the rule of law is essential.

“The government of India’s co-operation with Canada’s legal process is the right next step.”

Suspicions Indian agents have killed Sikh activists are not isolated to Mr Nijjar’s case.

Last November, the FBI said it had thwarted the attempted assassination in the US by an Indian agent of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh activist leader.

The authorities said they had indicted an Indian national working on behalf of an unnamed Indian government official.

British Sikh activist Kulwant Singh Mothada told Sky News in February he fears every day he will be assassinated by the Indian state after a “hit list” drawn up by India’s counter-terror department featuring his face was broadcast on Indian TV last year.

Mr Nijjar and Mr Pannun were also on the list.

Mr Mothada said he thinks the UK – unlike Canada and the US – is ignoring the issue to appease India.

“If I am assassinated then it’s the British government’s total responsibility,” he said.

In January, a cross-party group of parliamentarians requested an urgent meeting with then security minister Tom Tugendhat following reports of “threat to life warnings” being issued to British Sikhs.

A spokesperson for the UK government said that it continually assesses potential threats, and takes “the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK very seriously”.

Other leading Sikh activists in the US and Canada have also said they have been warned about threats to their lives.

India, meanwhile, has asked Britain to monitor UK-based Sikh separatists, accusing them of abusing the asylum system while being involved in “terrorist activities” in the South Asia country.

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Australian court ruling could lead to $640M in Bitcoin tax refunds

Published

5 hours ago

May 19, 2025

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Australian court ruling could lead to 0M in Bitcoin tax refunds

A court decision in Australia could open the door to as much as $640 million in capital gains tax (CGT) refunds on Bitcoin transactions after a judge ruled that crypto should be treated as money rather than a taxable asset.

On May 19, the Australian Financial Review (AFR) reported that the decision arose within a criminal case involving federal police officer William Wheatley, who allegedly stole 81.6 Bitcoin (BTC) in 2019. At the time, the assets were worth roughly $492,000. At current market prices, the tokens are valued at more than $13 million.

In the case, Judge Michael O’Connell of Victoria ruled that Bitcoin qualifies as a form of money rather than property, likening the digital asset to Australian dollars rather than to shares, gold or foreign currency.

The interpretation could set a legal precedent, potentially placing Bitcoin transactions outside the scope of Australia’s current CGT regime.

New court ruling challenges Australian crypto tax laws

In an AFR interview, tax lawyer Adrian Cartland said the verdict “totally upends” the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) current position.

Since 2014, the ATO has classified crypto assets as CGT assets. This means that users must pay tax when selling or trading them. Under the ATO’s guidance, any disposal of Bitcoin, including selling it for fiat, exchanging it for another crypto or using it to purchase goods or services, constitutes a CGT event.

This framework has been the basis for taxing cryptocurrency transactions in Australia for over a decade. However, the recent ruling challenges the approach by suggesting that Bitcoin functions more like money than property. This potentially exempts it from CGT.

Tax refunds could reach $640 million

Cartland said it was held that Bitcoin is Australian money. “That is, it is not a CGT asset. Therefore, acquisitions and disposals of Bitcoin have no tax consequences,” the tax lawyer added.

If the ruling is upheld on the appeal, Cartland estimates that there could be potential tax refunds totalling 1 billion Australian dollars ($640 million).

However, while Cartland thinks there could be up to a billion in refunds, the ATO said there were no official figures that confirm the amount to be potentially refunded if the case changes how Bitcoin is taxed in Australia.

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Revolut eyes French license and $1.1B expansion amid EU growth

Published

6 hours ago

May 19, 2025

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Revolut eyes French license and .1B expansion amid EU growth

Revolut, a European neobank with crypto support, plans to invest more than 1 billion euro ($1.1 billion) in France and apply for a local banking license.

According to a May 19 Fortune report, Revolut representatives announced the initiative during the Choose France business summit hosted by President Emmanuel Macron in Paris. The London-based neobank also plans to set up its new European Union-serving headquarters in Paris, promising to invest 1 billion euro and hire at least 200 people within three years.

Revolut spokespeople also said that the firm is in the process of submitting an application to the French banking regulator Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority. According to an anonymous source cited by Fortune, the regulator has been pushing the neobank to get a license to improve supervision due to its popularity in France.

Revolut currently employs about 300 people and serves five million customers in France. This makes the nation the neobank’s top European Union market.

Aiming for the stars

Revolut hopes to onboard 10 million users by the end of next year and then double that number by 2030. The firm already offers loans, trading and cryptocurrency support in its mobile-first banking platform.

The neobank has seen rapid growth ever since its founding in 2015. The company recently received a $45 billion valuation and reportedly served over 55 million customers as of late May.

Revolut’s 2024 annual report release shows that the firm’s 2024 revenue was 3.1 billion British pounds ($4 billion). A recent Financial News article also puts the company’s headcount at 10,133 employees as of Dec. 31, 2024.

An increasingly regulated institution

Revolut obtained its UK banking license in late July 2024, where 11 million of its customers are located. Now, the neobank is aggressively looking to obtain similar permits across other jurisdictions, with 10 applications underway.

Revolut received the Prepaid Payment Instruments license from India’s central bank earlier this month. This license allows the bank to offer multi-currency forex cards and cross-border remittance services in India.

EU-based Revolut customers now leverage its Lithuania operations. The firm received a banking license in Lithuania at the end of 2018, enabling it to serve customers across the European Economic Area better.

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Dubai regulator sets compliance deadline for updated crypto rules

Published

7 hours ago

May 19, 2025

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Dubai regulator sets compliance deadline for updated crypto rules

Dubai’s crypto regulator has given licensed digital asset companies until June 19 to comply with its updated activity-based Rulebooks to enhance market integrity and risk oversight.

On May 19, Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) announced that it had released Version 2.0 of the Rulebooks.

The regulator said it had strengthened controls around margin trading and token distribution services, harmonised compliance requirements across all licensed activities and given clearer definitions for collateral wallet arrangements.

VARA’s team will engage with licensed entities and expects the companies to comply with the updated rules after a 30-day transition period.

“In line with global regulatory best practices, a 30-day transition period has been granted to all impacted virtual asset service providers [VASPs], with full compliance required by 19 June 2025,” VARA wrote.

VARA enhances supervisory mechanisms

VARA highlighted that it had enhanced supervisory mechanisms across several regulated activities. This includes advisory, broker-dealer, custody, exchange, lending and borrowing, virtual asset (VA) management and investment, and VA transfer and settlement services.

A VARA spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the updates will bring consistency across all activity-based rules defining core operational terms. The spokesperson gave examples of terms like “client assets,” “qualified custodians,” and “collateral requirements” as some of the terms more consistently defined in the update.

The update also aligned risk management and disclosure obligations, where activities overlap, in areas like brokerage, custody and exchange.

“The aim was to reduce ambiguity and help VASPs navigate cross-functional compliance more easily,” VARA told Cointelegraph.

Dubai regulator tightens leverage thresholds for margin trading

As for margin trading, the VARA spokesperson said they tightened leverage thresholds, mandated clearer collateralisation standards, and enhanced the monitoring obligations for VASPs offering this feature.

Margin trading allows traders to control large positions with smaller amounts of capital. It amplifies both gains and losses. Tightening the leverage traders use helps limit the risks of widespread liquidations in a market downturn.

The crypto regulator introduced a new section on token distribution that sets out licensing prerequisites, investor protections and marketing restrictions. The spokesperson emphasized the marketing restrictions, especially for “retail-facing offers.”

“It’s about aligning with global conduct expectations and closing observed regulatory gaps,” the VARA spokesperson said.