Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is discontinuing ‘all services’ for its users in India from September 25, according to an email sent to users on Sunday (September 10).
“Please note that you will be able to access Coinbase.com or Coinbase app until September 25, 2023, and should withdraw funds held in your account by such date,” the email said. The crypto exchange has also halted new user signups for the app in India.
A Coinbase spokesperson said that the decision likely came after a routine review, during which some accounts were found to be non-compliant with the company’s updated standards. The company said it will disable these accounts and allow customers to update their information later.
“Affected users can withdraw their balances and send them to other crypto service providers until 25 September. Coinbase will continue to raise the bar to ensure the best possible experience for the crypto community,” Coinbase added.
Coinbase launched in India in April 2022 with an option to buy crypto using UPI. A few days later, the crypto exchange shut the UPI service amid pressure from regulators. Despite this setback, Indian users were still able to engage in peer-to-peer (P2P) trading with the existing cryptocurrencies in their wallets.
“A few days after launching, we ended up disabling UPI because of some informal pressure from the Reserve Bank of India, which is kind of the Treasury equivalent there. And India is a unique market in the sense that the Supreme Court has ruled that they can’t ban crypto. But there are elements in the government there, including at the Reserve Bank of India, who don’t seem to be as positive on it,” Armstrong said in an earnings call.
The Coinbase chief also claimed that the RBI was applying ‘soft pressure’ behind the scenes to try to disable payments which might be conducted through UPI.
However, as things stand now, Indian users on Coinbase can only send existing cryptos from their accounts. “Your funds remain secure with us, and you are able to send funds to other crypto wallets or services (subject to standard network and transaction fees), including Coinbase Wallet,” the company said in its email to users.
Incidentally, the exchange’s crypto services have not been available in India since it disabled UPI last year. The company had also laid off 8% of the Indian workforce last year.
The global crypto exchange is also an investor in two Indian crypto unicorns — Coinswitch Kuber and CoinDCX.
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