Leading Indian Crypto Exchange Zebpay Sets off for Malta
Perhaps the most stagnant of all global cryptocurrencies markets, the Indian crypto market’s future depends a great deal on the long-awaited decision by the Supreme Court of India, which has already been adjourned multiple times. This persistent state of uneasiness has forced one of India’s major digital currency exchanges, Zebpay, to ramp down its operations in the country and go overseas to crypto-friendly Malta. This was confirmed in a report published by Quartz India, dated October 18, 2018.
India’s Loss Is Malta’s Gain
Just a few weeks back, Zebpay had shut down its crypto exchange operations due to the challenging environment in the country. India’s apex bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has displayed a considerable amount of hostility towards anything crypto in the country.
Currently, there is an on-going court battle between the RBI and the Indian crypto proponents in the Supreme Court of India, the premier judicial authority in the country. Unfortunately, the final hearing of the case has been adjourned multiple times with no signs of it ending soon. The next hearing is scheduled for October 23, 2018.
Seeing the uncertain future of cryptocurrencies in India, crypto exchanges and business ventures seem to have a lot to worry about. One such evidence is the ramp down of Zebpay’s operations in India and its move to the pro-crypto nation, Malta.
In Malta, Zebpay’s new exchange will be providing its crypto services to the residents of more than 20 countries, except India.
Crypto investors residing in countries like Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, and Sweden will have access to Zebpay’s services.
The move is all the more dramatic as at one point of time, Zebpay exchange accounted for half the estimated six million crypto investors in the country.
Malta: The Global Crypto Leader
It’s commendable how a small nation situated in the Mediterranean Sea has emerged as one of the leaders in the global crypto ecosystem. The Maltese Government and authorities enjoy an excellent repo within the crypto community, and it’s not hard to see why.
Pro-crypto regulations in the country have made the island nation one of the most favorable countries for anything crypto. It should hardly come as a surprise that Malta is thus responsible for the largest share in cryptocurrency trading volume worldwide.
As reported by BTCManager on July 13, 2018, Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange is set to launch a regulated bank in Malta.
