Coinbase has continued to double down on its investment in the Indian cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX, increasing its post-money valuation to $2.45 billion. This latest play is a further sign of Coinbase’s long-term focus on India, which has an ever-growing appeal to international tech companies. Coinbase invested in CoinDCX, allowing them to close their earlier funding round. This investment is still pending regulatory approvals and usual closing conditions.
Coinbase has had a close relationship with CoinDCX, having first invested in the exchange alongside a US$3 million seed round back in 2020. The company deepened their collaboration during CoinDCX’s Series D funding round in 2022, with the funding coming from Coinbase Ventures. This new investment aims to leverage India’s booming digital asset ecosystem. With more than a billion internet subscribers already on the continent, the potential is staggering.
Back in July, CoinDCX was riding high on some shattering metrics. Customer assets surpassed ₹100 billion, more than $1.12 billion, and annualized group revenue reached ₹11.79 billion, approximately $133 million. In addition, the exchange posted annualized transaction volumes of ₹13.7 trillion (approximately $154.6 billion). Crypto.com encompassing over 20.4 million users, Crypto.com is among the top three largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the country.
India also happens to be a key, growing market for Coinbase and other U.S. tech firms. Combined with its unique status as the world’s most populous country, it makes it highly attractive. India follows the same playbook with a flat 30% tax on digital asset gains, plus a 1% take on each transaction. Yet this regulatory landscape encourages companies to adopt industry-leading compliant practices.
Coinbase has had a bad summer overall, as the company suffered a July security breach which resulted in the theft of roughly $44 million in assets. Nonetheless, the company has recovered and returned to the Indian market by registering with the Financial Intelligence Unit of India earlier this year. The exchange’s actions speak volumes about its resolve to build a strong foundation in a fast-changing marketplace.
Coinbase’s investment in CoinDCX is just one aspect of its broader Indian investment strategy, as it owns stakes in other major Indian platforms such as CoinSwitch. Shan Aggarwal, a representative from Coinbase, emphasized the company’s expanding presence in India:
“This investment adds to our growing presence in the region, where we also maintain local operations and other important local partners.” – Shan Aggarwal
Furthermore, CoinDCX has expanded its reach beyond India into the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region by acquiring BitOasis last year. This latest expansion is a testament to the exchange’s greater desire to become the go-to cryptocurrency hub in any region it operates.
Sumit Gupta, Co-founder and CEO of CoinDCX, expressed optimism about the partnership with Coinbase:
“We see strong synergies with Coinbase in building a compliant and regulatory-friendly crypto ecosystem in India, MENA, and beyond.” – Sumit Gupta
Yet the Indian government is ramping up pressure on international crypto exchanges. Just a few weeks ago, regulators moved against 25 platforms, such as BingX, LBank and CoinW. They didn’t register, and they didn’t follow anti-money laundering regs. This unique regulatory environment makes adherence imperative as companies balance operational and development challenges.