- British crypto-banking services provider, Cashaa, to launch a new bank in India called Unicas.
- Other noteworthy commitments to the Indian cryptocurrency industry spur growth as Binance and Polaris enter the market.
- This is despite mixed signals from law-makers and policy-makers.
The Indian cryptocurrency industry receives a boost from the entry of crypto-banking services provider Cashaa, despite regulatory uncertainty.
The Indian cryptocurrency industry is due to receive a boost as British crypto-banking services provider Cashaa establishes its Indian operation.
Partnering with India’s United Multistate Credit Cooperative Society, the British firm will launch a new crypto-friendly bank called Unicas.
Unicas will offer crypto savings accounts that pay interest to the savings-focused economy at 34 branches in northern India, expanding to 100 branches by the end of 2022. Customers will be able to walk into any branch and buy or sell several cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Cashaa’s own token: Cashaa (CAS).
This could prompt competitors to enter the market, driving mass cryptocurrency adoption in the world’s second most populous country.
Earlier this year, the Indian Supreme Court ruled against a controversial crypto-banking ban imposed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
The RBI sought a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies in the country, except for any state-backed initiative. This forced number of Indian crypto-exchanges to close, including Zebpay, which said at the time that they were “unable to find a reasonable way to conduct the cryptocurrency exchange business.”
However, the regulatory effort failed to halt the industry completely. Peer-to-peer trading continued to grow rapidly, even drawing comment from the RBI itself.
Since the lifting of the ban, growth has continued at pace. Exchange giant Binance acquired Indian exchange WazirX as it seeks to dominate the exchange market in India. Whilst investment group Polaris Capital announced it would be increasing its investment in the region.
Despite these positive moves, the Indian administration remains skeptical. A bill said to provide a legal framework for cryptocurrency in the industry failed to make it onto the Indian parliament’s agenda, despite promises from the Indian government. Furthermore, reports of a second ban on the industry have been circulating for some time.
All this creates uncertainty for businesses in the Indian cryptocurrency industry. If India wants to remain one of the fastest-growing regions for cryptocurrency globally, law-makers and policy-makers need to provide more clarity, or businesses like Cashaa will be forced to exit as quickly as they entered.
