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Indian government bans Coinbase

Indian government bans Coinbase

Three days after its launch in India, Coinbase, the largest United States-based exchange, has halted its crypto payment services. 

This happened after the United Payments Interface (UPI), the platform Coinbase uses to process payments in India, was suspended for all users in the country. The UPI is governed by the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI)

The Indian Ministry of Finance restricted the payment service due to regulatory disagreements between Coinbase and the government. 

Crypto news outlet, Cointelegraph reported on Monday, April 10, 2022, that Coinbase mentioned that it is working to fix the situation with the appropriate regulators.

The crypto company said it was “committed to working with the NPCI and other relevant authorities to ensure that we are aligned with local expectations and industry norms.”

The NPCI also highlighted in a statement posted on Twitter on Thursday, April 7, 2022, that it does not recognise the legal standing of any crypto exchanges using the UPI; this was just after Coinbase announced the release of its services. 

The suspension might have come into play after a recent comment by the Indian financial arm, which read, “With reference to some media reports around the purchase of cryptocurrencies using UPI, National Payments Corporation of India would like to clarify that we are not aware of any crypto exchange using UPI.”

India has toyed with the idea of an all-out ban on crypto before; they eventually settled on stricter restrictions. Some officials, such as T. Rabi Sankar, the Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, want a total ban. 

Fortunately, the country decided against following that route and placed a 30% tax on crypto trading instead. The new law took effect on March 31, 2022.

According to Cointelegraph, Coinbase users in India were not bothered by the sudden suspension of service. Crypto enthusiasts and investors in the country are used to the constant fluctuation of the government’s stance on crypto.

They have constantly innovated their way around these regulations, just like citizens in other countries where crypto is deemed illegal. The blockchain was built for scenarios like this, it offers, independence and individualism to everyone.

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