In a major move, MobiKwik is reported to have deactivated its e-wallet services from all major crypto exchanges in India from April 1. The month of April seems to bring in too much dissatisfaction among the Indian investors.
The announcement of a strict tax regime and enforcement of TDS by the government were yet not digested when the news of MobiKwik withdrawing its e- wallet services is doing the rounds. The news as of now, comes from four senior executives of leading crypto exchanges of India.
Although the investors will not hold on to the authenticity of the statement as the MobiKwik option is still showing its presence on some crypto apps but the service is not functioning.
MobiKwik’s above mentioned reported withdrawal follows a statement published by Unified Payments Interface (UPI) parent, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). On April 7, NPCI put out a statement saying they were not aware of any virtual digital asset exchange using UPI for transactions. “With reference to some recent 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,” the statement read.
NPCI made this statement after Coinbase, one of the major cryptocurrency exchange in the world, announced its debut in cryptocurrency trading in India in a big event on April 7, 2022. It also mentioned integration of UPI to facilitate crypto buying in India.
MobiKwik e-wallet was one of the ways that investors could use to transfer money to a crypto exchange. The other major options were via Unified Payments Interface (UPI), Netbanking or bank transfer. At least six major crypto exchanges in India were offering the MobiKwik e-wallet option.
Coinbase co-founder and chief executive Brian Armstrong said, “We know it’s not going to be a straight shot to bring this technology (blockchain; in the region). We don’t know exactly how it’s going to evolve but we’re committed to working with bank partners, regulators, most importantly, the Indian people because they showed a real spark of interest in cryptocurrency and there’s a real desire to get access to some of these services and products… India has shown a great willingness with UPI.”
As reported by above-mentioned report of Outlook Money, the spokesperson of NPCI said, “Whatever we have said in our statement is what we have to say. But maybe when we get more clarity on this, we will be able to say something (further).”
The crypto exchanges in India seem to struggle as two of the transaction options, UPI and MobiKwik are no more functional.
In reply to NPCI’s public statement, on April 9, Coinbase stated: “We are aware of the recent statement published by NPCI regarding the use of UPI by cryptocurrency exchanges. We are committed to working with NPCI and other relevant authorities to ensure we are aligned with local expectations and industry norms.” The company further noted, “India has a rich tradition of innovation and the burgeoning crypto ecosystem and adoption of the technology is a great example of this. As we enter the Indian market, we are actively experimenting with a number of payment methods and partners to enable our customers to seamlessly make their crypto purchases.”
It is pertinent to note that governments all over the world are actively making efforts to discourage its people not to invest in Cryptocurrencies or Crypto assets as they have no legal stamp of governments. India has imposed 30% tax on any gain made from crypto assets.
Recently, Janet Yellen , US Treasury Secretary, also called for the need of more government regulations to manage and supervise the burgeoning market of digital currency.
