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CoinSwitch Kuber Exchange Is Investigated By Indian Authorities

Leading Indian cryptocurrency exchange CoinSwitch Kuber has been accused by the authorities of violating foreign exchange laws.

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According to an August 25 report from Bloomberg, India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided the offices of CoinSwitch Kuber and the residence of Co-Founder and CEO Ashish Singhal. CoinSwitch Kuber is under suspicion of buying back more than $250 million worth of shares in violation of foreign exchange laws, as well as failing to comply with KYC requirements.

The ED is a federal intelligence agency operating under the Indian Ministry of Finance. According to its website, the main goal of the agency in the above action against CoinSwitch Kuber is to thoroughly address violations of the Foreign Exchange Management and Anti-Money Laundering Act. However, the exchange said it remains compliant with regulations and is ready to work to make things clearer.

The official said that five premises tied to the exchange are being searched in connection to India’s Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA):

“We are looking into multiple possible contraventions under FEMA and other entities that are connected to it. Since we did not receive the desired cooperation we have conducted searches on residences of directors, the CEO, and the official premises of the exchange.”

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Launched in India in 2020, CoinSwitch Kuber is one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in India along with WazirX and CoinDCX, with over 18 million registered users. The exchange is becoming a crypto unicorn in 2021 after raising $260 million in a Series C round led by Coinbase Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz. The company is also backed by Sequoia, Paradigm, Ribbit, and Tiger Global.

Earlier this month, the ED also froze about $8.1 million from WazirX, alleging that WazirX facilitated money laundering transactions. This is the main cause of the conflict in the relationship between WazirX and Binance.

DISCLAIMER: The Information on this website is provided as general market commentary and does not constitute investment advice. We encourage you to do your own research before investing.

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Harold

CoinCu News

Harold

With a passion for untangling the complexities of the financial world, I've spent over four years in financial journalism, covering everything from traditional equities to the cutting edge of venture capital. "The financial markets are a fascinating puzzle," I often say, "and I love helping people make sense of them." That's what drives me to bring clear and insightful financial journalism to the readers of Coincu.