Maharashtra's DELTA Act Targets India's First Property Tokenization Law

Maharashtra has directed officials to draft legislation for a blockchain-based property tokenization framework, a move that would make it the first Indian state with a dedicated law for digitizing and trading real estate assets on a distributed ledger.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he chaired a meeting in Mumbai to review the proposed Maharashtra Digitisation and Exchange of Land Token Asset Act (DELTA Act). The state government has begun work on the legislation, which is intended to create a legal framework for exchanging tokenized interests linked to immovable property through blockchain technology, according to a statement Fadnavis shared on X.

Fadnavis told officials to prepare the proposal as Maharashtra pursues its target of becoming a $1 trillion economy by 2030. Developing new sources of revenue would be important in reaching that goal, he said. Property tokenization could unlock the value embedded in land and real estate assets for public benefit.

Under the proposal, immovable properties would be tokenized on a blockchain-enabled digital framework. Transactions would be conducted through tokens linked to the value of those assets. Fadnavis also directed officials to study international laws, regulatory models and industry practices while drafting the legislation.

An expert committee will prepare the legal framework. It includes representatives from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Bombay Stock Exchange, the National Stock Exchange, and domain specialists, Fadnavis said.

If enacted, the DELTA Act would make Maharashtra the first Indian state to introduce legislation dedicated to blockchain-based property tokenization.

The proposal arrives as tokenization draws more attention among Indian policymakers, though the country still lacks a dedicated legal framework for tokenized real-world assets.

Last December, Member of Parliament Raghav Chadha urged the Indian government in the Rajya Sabha to introduce a standalone Tokenization Bill. He argued that assets including commercial real estate and infrastructure projects could be divided into digital units and purchased in fractional amounts. Chadha said tokenization could expand investment opportunities for India's middle class by allowing smaller investors to access assets that traditionally required substantial capital. He also called for a regulatory sandbox so new tokenization models could be tested under regulatory supervision.

Even before the latest proposal, Maharashtra had already indicated its interest in the sector. In November 2025, Fadnavis said the state was exploring a framework that could unlock an estimated ₹50 trillion in idle capital by digitizing asset transfers, particularly within Mumbai's real estate market. His comments followed disclosures from the Reserve Bank of India that wholesale central bank digital currency pilots for financial instruments had improved settlement efficiency.

Limited tokenization projects have already emerged within India's financial ecosystem. In Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), platforms including Tokeny and Terazo have developed regulated tokenized real estate structures using special purpose vehicles and public blockchain networks such as Polygon. Those initiatives continue to operate under existing securities and virtual digital asset rules rather than under dedicated tokenization legislation.

The Maharashtra proposal also comes as India's national approach to cryptocurrencies remains far more conservative than its emerging discussion around asset tokenization.

Documents reviewed by Reuters earlier this month showed that the Reserve Bank of India has once again recommended keeping cryptocurrencies and privately issued stablecoins outside the regulated financial system. The RBI maintained that limiting banking sector exposure would reduce financial stability risks while also raising concerns that foreign currency-backed stablecoins could affect India's monetary sovereignty, according to the documents.

The Reuters report also showed that India's Income Tax Department has warned policymakers about continuing challenges in monitoring cryptocurrency transactions conducted through overseas exchanges and self-custodied wallets, making tax enforcement more difficult despite the country's existing 30% tax on crypto gains.

Alongside those policy discussions, financial regulators have continued tightening oversight of the digital asset sector through compliance measures instead of introducing comprehensive crypto legislation.

Earlier this year, India's Financial Intelligence Unit instructed major cryptocurrency exchanges to preserve records of over-the-counter cryptocurrency transactions exceeding $10,000 from January 2026 onward. The directive requires exchanges to retain information on beneficial ownership, source of funds and destination wallets as authorities expand anti-money laundering supervision, according to reports.

Separate FIU guidance issued in January also introduced stricter customer verification requirements, including live selfie verification and geolocation checks.

While India's approach to cryptocurrencies remains unresolved at the national level, discussions surrounding blockchain applications have continued in parallel. Asset tokenization, particularly for real estate, has increasingly been examined as a separate policy area with potential uses beyond cryptocurrency trading.

Internationally, jurisdictions including the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Hong Kong, Germany and the United States have already introduced or tested regulated frameworks for tokenized real-world assets and fractional ownership. Fadnavis said Maharashtra's proposed legislation would draw from global regulatory models and best practices as officials prepare the state's draft law.

The proposal now moves into the legislative drafting stage. The expert committee will develop the legal framework before any bill is introduced for consideration.