Google Delists Major Crypto Exchanges from Play Store in India Amid Regulatory Tensions
Summary:
Several major international crypto exchanges, including Binance and KuCoin, have been removed from Google's Play Store in India following regulatory non-compliance. The removal follows previous delistings from India's Apple App Store. Despite the delisting, the apps remain operational for existing users. The move comes after India's introduction of a 30% crypto tax and further efforts to curb the operation of foreign exchanges in the country. The impacted exchanges have yet to comment.
Various international digital asset exchanges, including Binance, KuCoin, Bitget, Huobi, OKX, Gate.io, and MEXC, have been delisted from Google's Play Store in India. This comes on the heels of these applications being taken down from the apple app store in India. The Indian government's lack of regulatory compliance catalyzed the delisting, making the apps inaccessible to new customers in the country.
On December 28, 2023, India's Ministry of Finance's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) sent out a notice to nine exchanges - Binance, Huobi, Kraken, Gate.io, KuCoin, Bitstamp, MEXC Global, Bittrex, and Bitfinex - accusing them of unlawful operations within India.
The notice from the Financial Intelligence Unit emphasized that all exchanges wishing to cater to Indian clientele need to register their operations and regularly submit financial statements to the country's income tax department. Non-compliance with this directive, the FIU suggested, should result in a block by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on their sites.
Despite this, the digital asset exchanges flagged by the FIU maintain operations for customers who already have the app installed and can still be accessed via the internet.
Binance, in response to its delisting on the Apple App Store, gave assurances via the X platform that the delisting will not impact the safety of Indian users' accounts and funds.
The drive to restrict the operation of international exchanges came as trading volumes sunk following the introduction of a 30% tax on cryptocurrencies and a 1% deduction on each crypto trade. The high rates prompted Indian traders to turn to foreign exchanges.
The Indian Finance Bill, unveiled during the 2022-2023 parliamentary budget session, amended tax laws to include a 30% tax on cryptocurrency holdings and transactions. Moreover, traders can no longer counterbalance losses with profits, with every trading pair being separately accounted for tax purposes.
Binance and KuCoin have not yet responded to inquiries from Cointelegraph.
In other news, Sellix founder Daniele Servadei, aged 20, was profiled in 6 question piece in our Magazine section.
Published At
1/14/2024 10:30:52 AM
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