PART VIII

                            IS BITCOIN A GOOD?

Bitcoin may very well fall under the meaning of “goods” and may be covered under the Sale of Goods Act. The act defines “good” as:
“every kind of movable property other than actionable claims and money; and includes stock and shares, growing crops, grass, and things attached to or forming part of the land which are agreed to be severed before sale or under the contract of sale.”
   Further the Forward Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1952 also defines goods to mean “every kind of movable property other than actionable claims, money and securities”.

In Tata Consultancy Services v. State of Andhra Pradesh, the Supreme Court stated that, “computer software is intellectual property, whether it is conveyed in diskettes, floppy, magnetic tapes or CD ROMs, whether canned (Shrink-wrapped) or uncanned (customized), whether it comes as part of computer or independently, whether it is branded or unbranded, tangible or intangible; is a commodity capable of being transmitted, transferred, delivered, stored, processed, etc. and therefore as a ‘good’ liable To sales tax.”

On a bare reading it seems that Bitcoins can be classified as 'Goods' of intangible nature (akin to a computer programme or software).

We will see whether Bitcoin can be classified as 'Commodity' under the current legal regime in India, in next part.