on the crypto
Some large banks in India have increased their willingness to do business with select cryptocurrency exchanges and their clients.
Even Indian banks overwhelmed by the current frenzied demand for cryptocurrencies
Top Indian institutions like State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Yes Bank have decided to allow their clients to use their bank accounts to fund cryptocurrency trading. They are also offering various facilities for cryptocurrency exchanges, sources familiar with the matter told The Economic Times.
Accounts of major exchanges were suspended after the Reserve Bank of India issued an order banning banks from using their systems for cryptocurrency transactions in April 2018.
The ban was overturned by the Supreme Court earlier this year, and the news was enthusiastically received by the crypto community. "Banks in general have taken a cautious approach even after the supreme court overturned the central bank's ban on crypto products in March," said Gaurav Dahake, founder and CEO of Bangalore-based exchange Bitbns.
"But with the passage of time and with the increase in prices around bitcoin (BTC), many more customers have started asking to open a specific cryptocurrency trading account and banks have now started opening them." Bitcoin recently hit a new high of $ 19.920, surpassing the previous high of $ 19.783 reached in December 2017 - here quotation in real time.
What does Sumit Gupta, the CEO of the CoinDCX exchange, think
Sumit Gupta, CEO of Mumbai-based cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX, confirmed that her exchange has worked with multiple banking partners to build and develop business services ever since the Supreme Court ban was lifted.
Meanwhile, Nischal Shetty, CEO of Binance-backed cryptocurrency exchange WazirX, revealed that banks have contacted the company to offer working capital or other financial loans and services. A banker who asked to remain anonymous, however, told The Economic Times that his bank is still cautious when dealing with cryptocurrency exchanges and has decided to serve only a select few for the time being.
Banks open to cryptocurrencies, government remains unclear
While banks have begun to serve cryptocurrency exchanges and traders, the Indian government's stance on cryptocurrency trading remains unclear. In September, the government was rumored to be reflecting on the possible ban on cryptocurrency trading, but at the same time exploring the usefulness of blockchain in managing land records, the pharmaceutical supply chain, and documents for educational certificates.
