Jaishankar's laser eyes meme hides how India blinded itself on crypto

The Print

6 hours ago

The irony is stark: Jaishankar symbolises a state apparatus deeply suspicious of crypto. India's discomfort was clearly demonstrated in 2018 when Unocoin launched India's first Bitcoin ATM . Though technically not illegal, the machine was bold in timing and was swiftly shut down, and both co-founders were arrested on baseless charges. They were ultimately acquitted , but only after enduring two and a half years navigating India's notoriously slow courts. The arrests sent a chilling message: legality didn't matter, and innovation, particularly technology rooted in decentralisation and autonomy, was unwelcome.
The laser eyes meme, initially a symbol for Bitcoin maximalism—'laser ray until 100K'—was popularised by crypto enthusiasts in early 2021. Over time, it evolved into a broader emblem of intensity and dominance, appearing in unexpected contexts, including Indian nationalist memes featuring Foreign Minister S Jaishankar. When asked about his laser-eyed depictions, Jaishankar simply remarked that it was ' a bit weird '.
There are few things that irk Indians more than being upstaged by Pakistan, or even hearing such a claim, however dubious. An occasional Pakistani win in cricket triggers a wave of national grief. Rarely, Indians might comfortably acknowledge instances of Pakistani superiority, such as their Coke Studio. But these moments remain anomalies. In recent times, even memes have become arenas where these tensions play out symbolically.
Bitcoin itself arose in direct response to centralised economic control. Sometime after the 2008 financial crisis, pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto proposed a decentralised financial alternative, a libertarian defiance against traditional banking. Bitcoin maximalists still reject the term 'crypto,' viewing Bitcoin as the only truly valuable digital asset. Yet, many crypto initiatives claim descent from Bitcoin's original ethos of decentralisation, autonomy, and freedom from oversight, albeit to varying degrees.
Also read: India doesn't understand crypto enough to pass regulatory law. Here's all you need to know
A brief history of crypto in India
India's regulatory history with crypto underscores its centralised impulses. In April 2018, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued a circular directing banks to stop servicing crypto exchanges, effectively blocking banking access for crypto businesses and forcing many to shut down. In March 2020, the Supreme Court of India overturned this circular, ruling the RBI action 'disproportionate' and restored banking ties to crypto platforms.
However, the relief was short-lived. In the 2022 Union Budget, the government labelled cryptocurrencies as 'virtual digital assets' and introduced a flat 30 per cent tax on crypto profits, with no deductions or loss offsets allowed. A 1 per cent TDS on transfers (above threshold limits) took effect from July 1, 2022. As of the 2025 Budget, crypto tax rules remain unchanged, and mandatory reporting requirements for digital-asset transactions under Schedule VDA will be implemented in FY 2025–26.
The net effect was devastating: crypto exchanges dried up, entrepreneurs relocated abroad, and Indian exchanges saw up to 97% of its crypto volume flee. The 2022 tax regime's treatment of crypto like gambling winnings with a 30% flat tax and no loss offsets, combined with ongoing regulatory uncertainty, created a hostile environment that drove away innovation. Many Indians missed out on significant wealth creation opportunities during recent crypto rallies, leaving them relatively poorer than global peers who benefited from more favourable policies. The government's paranoia about losing control trumped basic fiscal sense: India chose to lose Rs 6,000 crore in tax revenue rather than create a business-friendly crypto framework, with projections showing an additional Rs 17,700 crore loss over five years.
Further reinforcing centralisation, India introduced the e-rupee, its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). Designed with tight controls, including caps on wallet sizes and restrictions on usage and the capability to place limits on where money can be spent, CBDCs could enable mass surveillance. It represents centralised control masquerading as digital innovation.
In stark contrast stands the United States under Donald Trump. In January 2025, Trump explicitly banned U.S. agencies from launching a CBDC, calling it a threat to 'individual privacy.' He instead created a strategic Bitcoin reserve, a 'Digital Fort Knox,' embracing Bitcoin as a sovereign asset.
Also read: Why is Pakistan going all out on crypto? There's a Donald Trump angle
Pakistan's strategic positioning vs India's missed opportunity
Pakistan's crypto announcements at Bitcoin 2025 conference reveal a calculated geopolitical gambit rather than genuine policy innovation. The Las Vegas spectacle, complete with promises of Bitcoin reserves and 2,000 MW for mining, represents textbook diplomatic positioning aimed at currying favor with the Trump administration's crypto-friendly stance.
This strategy became particularly evident through the Pakistan Crypto Council's Letter of Intent with World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a US-based firm reportedly 60% owned by Donald Trump's sons, Eric and Donald Jr., and son-in-law Jared Kushner. Donald Trump himself is listed as 'Chief Crypto Advocate' on WLFI's homepage, prominently featuring his portrait. Pakistan's Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Crypto and Blockchain, Bilal Bin Saqib, made these headline-grabbing announcements, crafting a narrative perfectly aligned with Trump's 'Digital Fort Knox' vision.
Adding further credibility to their crypto strategy, Pakistan appointed Changpeng 'CZ' Zhao, co-founder of Binance (the world's largest crypto exchange), as a strategic advisor to the Pakistan Crypto Council. This move signalled Pakistan's ability to attract top-tier crypto talent and expertise while demonstrating serious intent to international markets. Even the high priest of bitcoin, Michael Saylor, explicitly endorsed Pakistan's strategic move and offered to help Pakistan build a bitcoin reserve.
The performative nature of these announcements was further underscored by domestic contradictions: shortly after the Bitcoin 2025 conference, Pakistani officials clarified that cryptocurrency remains illegal under current regulations in Pakistan. Meanwhile, India remained passive, treating crypto policy as a purely domestic regulatory matter rather than recognising its geopolitical dimensions.
Policy warfare: Pakistan's strategic use of India's failures
Perhaps the most damaging aspect of Pakistan's crypto diplomacy isn't what they promised to build, but how they systematically weaponised India's policy failures on the global stage. In a March 2025 Bloomberg interview, Pakistan Crypto Council CEO Bilal Bin Saqib explicitly used India as a cautionary tale: ' we've seen this mistake before. India putting a 30% tax on the crypto trades drastically reduced the exchange volume. Our approach will be different.'
Pakistan positioned itself as having learned from India's regulatory missteps, promising a more business-friendly framework when they implement their own crypto policies. This was Pakistan's crypto minister, on one of the world's most influential financial platforms, telling international investors that Pakistan would avoid India's 'mistakes.'
However, the ambitious international announcements faced a bitter reality check at home. Just days after Bilal Bin Saqib's high-profile Bitcoin 2025 presentation, Pakistani officials told their National Assembly that 'the use of crypto currencies was illegal and anyone dealing in these currencies was liable to be investigated.' The Finance Secretary confirmed that 'the work on the crypto currencies is at a very, very preliminary stage' with no legal framework in place, while the Pakistan Crypto Council itself was operating only 'under executive orders of the prime minister' without legal backing. Pakistan's own central bank maintained that crypto trading and holding remained illegal under 2018 instructions.
Meanwhile, India's response to changing global dynamics remained stubbornly inward-looking. When recently asked whether India might reconsider its restrictive crypto stance given America's shift towards a more crypto-friendly policy, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman encapsulated India's strategic blindness by responding, 'We are India. I will think about India.'
The information warfare proved effective despite implementation uncertainties. Pakistan successfully pitched itself as the regional alternative to India's restrictive approach, even while their own regulatory framework remained non-existent. International crypto firms began viewing Pakistan as potentially more crypto-friendly than India, despite Pakistan's current legal prohibition and India's established (though heavily taxed) framework. Even Indian government advisors recognized the competitive threat, warning that 'Indians' financial data falling into the hands of Pakistani entities' was a national security concern.
Diplomatic theatre that worked
Pakistan's crypto diplomacy achieved concrete results that went far beyond ceremonial announcements. The World Liberty Financial delegation, led by Zachary Witkoff (son of Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff), met with Pakistan's highest levels of leadership: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Army Chief General Asim Munir, and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar. This wasn't just business networking—it was full-fledged diplomatic engagement facilitated at the military level.
The diplomatic windfall extended to Washington, where Bilal Bin Saqib met with over a dozen key U.S. government officials and lawmakers, including Senators Cynthia Lummis, Bill Hagerty, and Rick Scott. Pakistan's broader messaging was deliberate and aspirational. As Saqib had emphasized in meetings back home, '[PCC] exists because our youth demand a seat at the global tech table,' stressing that digital finance and decentralisation offer opportunities, not threats. Pakistan was engaging with senators who had authored key crypto legislation, while India remained absent from these conversations entirely.
The contrast reveals a fundamental strategic blindness: Pakistan postured with promises it cannot deliver yet gained influence in Washington, while India, with actual power surplus, superior infrastructure, and genuine capabilities, imposed crippling taxes and restrictions on its own sector. Substance was penalised, while theatre was rewarded.
The broader stakes
Pakistan's approach offers India a strategic lesson, not a policy template. Recognising crypto's geopolitical dimensions and leveraging India's genuine capabilities is essential. India possesses the fundamentals Pakistan lacks: power surplus status with negligible deficit (0.1% in FY 2024-25), peak demand management exceeding 240 GW, sophisticated financial infrastructure, massive tech talent pools, and a stable economy. Where Pakistan promises 2,000 MW for mining while dealing with chronic energy shortages, India could actually deliver at scale.
Rather than reactive regulation focused on control, India should pursue proactive engagement that positions the country as an indispensable partner in the global digital asset ecosystem. Countries like the UAE and Switzerland demonstrate success by embracing openness rather than suffocating innovation. India's pathway to progress is not through surveillance and tight controls but by stepping aside and allowing innovation to flourish.
The stakes extend far beyond technological leadership. Recent weaponisation of SWIFT sanctions and economic conflicts suggest that the continued dominance of the U.S. dollar as the global reserve currency is not guaranteed. By proactively embracing crypto, India could strategically position itself within an emerging multipolar financial order, safeguarding its financial sovereignty and economic competitiveness. Even the United States, by establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve, appears to be hedging against this potential shift, ensuring it remains economically dominant and influential regardless of how global finance evolves.
India's current crypto restrictions risk sidelining the country from this strategic positioning precisely when financial sovereignty matters most. While other nations are building crypto capabilities as potential alternatives to existing systems, India's restrictive approach could leave it dependent on whatever financial architecture others construct.
The ultimate irony
Ultimately, the meme with Jaishankar's laser eyes reveals a deeper story, not about the man himself, but about India's uneasy relationship with innovation, autonomy, and the decentralised future. Pakistan's crypto announcements gained international attention through a well-coordinated influence campaign that included partnership opportunities with Trump family businesses, high-level diplomatic engagement, and systematic positioning as an emerging crypto power.
Yet the particular irony stung: here was Pakistan's crypto minister on Bloomberg, publicly criticising India's crypto policies as 'mistakes' to avoid, while India's own foreign minister was being memed with laser eyes – the very symbol of bitcoin enthusiasm.
The broader lesson extends beyond crypto: India must recognise that in a multipolar world, domestic policy decisions have international consequences that can be weaponised by strategic rivals.
The laser eyes were supposed to represent strength and intensity. Instead, they became a symbol of blinded vision: projecting power while systematically undermining the very capabilities that could have made that projection real.
Ajay Mallareddy is co-founder of Hyderabad-based Centre for Liberty. His X handle is @IndLibertarians. Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant)