Global crypto firm opens direct rupee payment rails, ramps up India push
Direct bank transfers replace peer-to-peer channels
A global cryptocurrency company has launched direct Indian rupee payment rails, letting users in India deposit and withdraw funds via bank accounts using the Immediate Payment Service (IMPS).
The move removes the need for peer-to-peer intermediaries and brings in rupee-denominated order books aimed at deepening onshore liquidity. By linking directly with a widely used domestic payment system, the platform is creating a more direct, regulated channel between traditional banking and digital assets.
New tools: spot markets and perpetual futures
Along with spot trading, the firm has enabled perpetual futures contracts on major digital assets for users in India.
Its professional trading platform now offers:
- institutional-grade application programming interfaces (APIs)
- WebSocket order book streaming for real-time data
These features target advanced and high-frequency traders seeking more robust execution and market access. The introduction of perpetual futures gives local market participants tools to hedge and speculate in a way that was previously harder to implement through offshore venues or indirect routes.
Regulatory registration adds compliance clarity
The expansion follows the company’s registration with the Financial Intelligence Unit of India (FIU-IND), the agency that oversees anti-money laundering and counter-terror financing compliance.
O’Loghlen, head of the Asia-Pacific division, said the registration confirms the firm’s regulatory status in India. More than 50 offshore platforms have faced restrictions for failing to comply with local rules, making formal FIU-IND registration a key differentiator for users focused on legal clarity and reporting obligations.
The alignment with India’s anti-money laundering framework comes as tax receipts from virtual digital asset transactions have risen, with collections reaching ₹511 crore in the 2024–25 fiscal year.
Return to India after regulatory pause
The company resumed onboarding Indian customers in December 2025, marking its return to the market after a two-year absence linked to regulatory uncertainty.
Its comeback coincides with a domestic crypto sector that is expanding rapidly. Projections suggest the Indian digital asset market could reach a valuation of $11.07 billion by 2031, up from $2.0 billion in the first quarter of 2026. The growth is supported by a young population and an estimated 90 million digital asset holders as of 2026.
Local investment and developer ecosystem
Beyond trading, the firm has backed India’s blockchain ecosystem with more than $1 million invested in local development on its Layer 2 network project, Base.
Key metrics from its India-focused initiatives include:
- over 4,000 developers participating in building on Base
- roughly 150 projects maturing into startups
The company’s strategic stake in domestic exchange CoinDCX further anchors its presence in the Indian tech and crypto infrastructure stack.
Impact on liquidity, spreads and execution
The introduction of rupee-denominated order books is expected to concentrate buy and sell interest from Indian market participants into clearly visible, onshore markets.
For traders, this could translate into:
- deeper order books for rupee trading pairs
- tighter spreads between bid and ask prices
- reduced slippage, or the gap between expected and actual execution prices
Direct IMPS-based rails are also likely to shorten reaction times to market-moving news, as capital can move faster between bank accounts and the trading platform.
Perpetual futures deepen strategy options
The rollout of perpetual futures in India enables more sophisticated hedging and trading structures tied to rupee markets.
Perpetual contracts differ from traditional futures in that they do not have an expiry date, allowing positions to be held over flexible time horizons. Their pricing is anchored by funding payments exchanged between long and short positions, which can move in favor of or against traders depending on market conditions.
These instruments now give Indian users a more straightforward way to manage risk exposures or pursue directional strategies without routing through foreign platforms.
India’s leading role in global crypto adoption
India ranked first worldwide in cryptocurrency adoption for the third year in a row, ahead of the United States, Pakistan, the Philippines and Brazil, according to an October report by TRM Labs.
High trading activity and a broad base of developers have set India apart as one of the most active digital asset markets, making it a priority growth region for global platforms despite ongoing regulatory evolution.
Market reaction and share performance
On Friday, the company’s shares closed up 3.72% at $189.03, though the stock remains down 30.7% over the past six months.
Analysts are watching whether the renewed push into India — combining direct rupee rails, derivatives access and local ecosystem funding — can support longer-term revenue and user growth. The outcome will depend on volumes in rupee markets, regulatory stability and global trading conditions.
Expansion amid cautious global crypto backdrop
The India relaunch is occurring against a mixed global macro picture for digital assets. As of late May, Bitcoin was trading around $73,000, still below its cycle peak.
At the same time, data has shown notable outflows from global crypto exchange-traded funds, and sentiment indicators have hovered in the “extreme fear” range.
This combination of subdued risk appetite and heightened volatility creates a challenging backdrop. For the company, the timing means that the performance of its Indian operations could become an early test of whether domestic demand and high adoption rates can offset headwinds in the wider crypto market.
Want deeper insight into rupee rails, liquidity, and futures? Explore our detailed guide on liquidity in crypto trading today.
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