The Madras High Court, presided over by Justice N. Anand Venkatesh, has ruled that XRP qualifies as property under Indian law, marking a significant legal precedent in the country's cryptocurrency landscape. This decision emerged from a case linked to the July 2024 WazirX hack, where an investor sought protection after the exchange froze accounts following a cyberattack that resulted in $230 million in losses involving Ethereum and ERC-20 tokens.
Justice Venkatesh based his ruling on Section 2(47A) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, which classifies cryptocurrencies as virtual digital assets. He explicitly stated, "Cryptocurrency (XRP) is property under Indian law, can be owned and held in trust," emphasizing that digital assets like XRP are identifiable, transferable, and controllable through private keys. The case involved an investor who purchased 3,532.30 XRP coins worth approximately Rs 1,98,516 in January 2024, and the court dismissed arguments from Zanmai Labs (WazirX's operator) that the investor should share losses, noting that the stolen assets were Ethereum-based and distinct from the plaintiff's XRP holdings.
The court affirmed Indian jurisdiction over the matter, rejecting claims that Singapore arbitration rules applied, and called for stricter Web3 governance standards, including separate client funds and robust anti-money laundering protocols. Despite the ruling, no immediate market shifts or changes in on-chain indicators were observed post-judgment. This decision is expected to influence future regulatory frameworks and asset recovery efforts in India, though its impact remains largely jurisdictional for now.
MIM
LTC
BTC
ETH
ZK