After more than two years in exile, Coinbase has quietly reopened its doors to Indian users, marking a significant step in the crypto giant's comeback strategy for one of the world's largest digital markets. The exchange is now accepting new registrations and enabling crypto-to-crypto trading, with plans to introduce fiat currency support in 2026 that could unlock India's massive retail investor base.
Coinbase is betting big on India's crypto future, despite the market's notorious regulatory hurdles. The US-based exchange has begun onboarding users again after registering with India's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) earlier this year, signaling a more compliance-focused approach than its previous attempt.
The company's APAC director John O'Loghlen revealed the timeline at India Blockchain Week, telling attendees that fiat trading will launch sometime in 2026. This means Indian users will eventually be able to convert rupees directly into Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other cryptocurrencies - a crucial feature for mass adoption that was missing from the initial 2022 launch.
"We had millions of customers in India, historically, and we took a very clear stance to off-board those customers entirely from overseas entities," O'Loghlen explained during his presentation. "Because we wanted to kind of burn the boats, have a clean slate here. As a commercial business person wanting to make money and active users, that's like the worst thing you can do."
That dramatic exit came after a regulatory collision course in 2022. Coinbase had launched with support for India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI), the country's dominant digital payment system. But within days, the National Payments Corporation (NPCI) - which operates UPI - refused to acknowledge the exchange's presence, forcing an immediate shutdown of rupee deposits.
The company limped along for another year before pulling the plug entirely in 2023, asking all Indian users to withdraw their funds and close their accounts. The move cost Coinbase millions of active users in what's arguably crypto's most important emerging market.
Now the exchange is taking a more measured approach. It began testing the waters in October with early access invitations for select users, gathering feedback before opening registrations to the broader public. The current offering is limited to crypto-to-crypto trading - users can swap between different digital assets but can't yet deposit or withdraw rupees.
The regulatory landscape remains challenging. India imposes a punishing 30% tax on crypto gains with no loss offset provisions, plus a 1% tax deducted at source on every transaction. These rules make frequent trading expensive and have kept many institutional investors on the sidelines.
