India’s Supreme Court is expected to have a session on July 20 to hear a petition seeking to reverse a directive issued by the Reserve Bank of India banning all banks in the country from dealing with digital currencies. According to media reports, a total of five petitions have been filed at the court seeking to overturn the directive. The court says it will not accept any more petitions on the matter.

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RBI’s ban on cryptocurrencies

Earlier this month, the Reserve Bank of India issued a circular to all regulated financial institutions prohibiting them from participating in facilitating cryptocurrency activities. The bank cited risks that come with digital currencies as the reason for taking the decision. In the announcement, the bank gave financial institutions that have ongoing crypto-related businesses a period of 60 days to conclude them.

Cryptocurrencies became the center of focus for financial regulators after the price of bitcoin rose precipitously to trade at around $20,000 at the end of last year.

Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) petition

Among the petitioners that are seeking to overturn the decision by the RBI is Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI). Reports indicate that the IAMAI filed a petition at the apex court seeking to have a stay on the order. Subho Ray, the president of IAMAI confirmed the filing of the petition but did not divulge more details on the matter.

In 2017, a number of cryptocurrency exchanges came together to form an umbrella body called the Digital and Blockchain Foundation of India aimed at liaising with the regulator and the government. However, the body was later merged with IAMAI. Some of the crypto-exchanges that make IAMAI are Coinsecure, Zebpay and Unocoin.

Last month, Kali Digital Eco-Systems, a cryprocurency company based in Ahmedabad said the directive issued by the RBI is against the citizen’s Constitutional rights to engage in any occupation, business or trade.

Through the petitions, the companies are seeking to showcase self-regulatory policies like Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC).

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) is currently trading at $7,675.02, down (-3.39%).

Ethereum (ETH-USD) is trading at $598.91 down (-3.68%) and Ripple (XRP-USD) is trading at $0.62 down (-3.22%).