Bitcoin exchanges bite the bullet

Photo: Bloomberg

Mumbai: This week, the Supreme Court (SC) is likely to give its final verdict on the use of banking channels to buy and sell bitcoins on cryptocurrency exchanges. As of now, you can’t use your bank account to buy or sell cryptocurrency from any exchanges in India. But even before the verdict is out, the affected parties have left the battlefield.

Zebpay, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the country, shut its business on Friday. In an email, the company said, “The curb on bank accounts has crippled our and our customer’s ability to transact business meaningfully. At this point, we are unable to find a reasonable way to conduct the cryptocurrency exchange business.”

Ajeet Khurana, chief executive officer, Zebpay, said, “I wrote the final email. We were tired of waiting for the verdict. Whatever comes out of the judgement, it is not a battle to legalise cryptocurrency. This is just the first one. There will be many more to follow. And fighting it…