Coinbase has reinitiated user onboarding in India after a hiatus of over two years, marking its first move back into a market it exited in 2023 due to regulatory complications concerning payment systems.
The platform is once again permitting new registrations and crypto-to-crypto transactions, with intentions to reintroduce fiat access next year, shared APAC director John O’Loghlen at last week’s India Blockchain Week.
This comes after a lengthy stalemate that began in 2022 when Coinbase first launched in India with the support of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) but retracted the feature shortly after, following the network operator’s refusal to acknowledge the exchange.
Subsequently, Coinbase ceased all services, off-boarded millions of users in India, and shut down local access while evaluating regulatory risks.
O’Loghlen indicated that the company chose a “clean slate” strategy and began direct engagement with the Financial Intelligence Unit, the body overseeing digital asset transactions. Coinbase achieved FIU registration earlier this year and started admitting users through an early-access program in October.
The application is currently broadly available, although trading is restricted to crypto pairs until fiat options are reestablished.
India remains one of the most challenging significant markets for exchanges due to a 30% flat tax on crypto profits, restrictions on offsetting losses, and a 1% transaction fee that dampens trading activity.
In spite of the regulatory challenges, Coinbase continues to invest in India. Its venture arm has recently increased its stake in local exchange CoinDCX, which is valued at $2.45 billion, and the company aims to grow its workforce of over 500 in India across both local and global product lines.
