India’s Digital Gold Market Faces Reform Push as Experts Recommend…

Sarah J · 2026-04-22T16:06:30.000Z

India’s fast-growing digital gold market is facing renewed calls for stronger regulation, with policy experts recommending that the country adopt elements of the United Kingdom’s financial oversight model to improve investor protection, transparency, and market discipline. As millions of Indians increasingly use fintech platforms to buy fractional gold online, the sector is becoming too large to remain in a regulatory grey zone. Digital gold allows users to purchase small quantities of gold through apps and payment platforms without physically holding the metal. The convenience, low entry cost, and cultural trust in gold have made it especially popular among younger and first-time investors. According to recent estimates cited in the analysis, Indians bought around 12 tonnes of digital gold between January and November 2025, with trading volumes valued near ₹16,000 crore. However, unlike regulated products such as gold ETFs or exchange-traded securities, much of India’s digital gold ecosystem operates outside direct securities regulation. The article argues that while some gold receipts and vault-linked systems fall within formal frameworks, many fintech-led offerings do not, creating uneven standards for custody, pricing, audits, disclosures, and grievance redressal. Experts suggest India study Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority model, which uses activity-based regulation rather than platform-based loopholes. Under such an approach, any product functioning like an investment product would face common standards regardless of whether it is sold by a stock exchange, fintech app, or payment wallet. This could reduce regulatory arbitrage and improve consumer confidence. The issue is strategically significant because digital gold sits at the intersection of finance, commodities, savings behaviour, and digital commerce. If properly regulated, it could become an efficient micro-investment product supporting formal financial inclusion. If poorly supervised, it risks misleading advertising, opaque pricing, counterparty risk, and consumer disputes. For India, the debate reflects a broader policy challenge: how to regulate fast-moving fintech innovation without stifling growth. Similar questions are already emerging across crypto assets, tokenised products, embedded finance, and AI-led investing platforms. Creating clear rules for digital gold may therefore become a template for future digital asset regulation. As India builds one of the world’s largest digital finance ecosystems, trust and governance will be as important as innovation. A modern regulatory framework for digital gold could help transform a fragmented market into a credible long-term savings channel aligned with global best practices.

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India’s Digital Gold Market Faces Reform Push as Experts Recommend… | SEINET