The U.S. based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is planning to establish its business presence in India and intends to open an office in Hyderabad even as uncertainty around the country’s stance for the digital asset continues.
In a blog post, the company said that it is now hiring in India and expects to open a physical office, initially in Hyderabad, for Indian employees as COVID-related conditions allow. ‘’India has long been known as a hub for engineering and technology innovation, and we look forward to finding that world-class talent to help the Coinbase group develop new ways for our customers to interact with the cryptoeconomy’’, the company added.
Founded in 2012, Coinbase offers a platform for users to buy and sell several cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Litecoin etc. The largest US cryptocurrency exchange has over 43 million users worldwide and the platform’s recent private market transactions had valued the company at around $68 billion this year.
The company in December had confidentially applied with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to go public and later revealed its planning to list in the US exchanges in a direct-listing initial public offering. In direct listing, the company sells shares directly to the public without getting help from intermediaries.
Coinbase’s plans to open a branch in India comes at a time when the government is giving mixed signals on the cryptocurrency front. However, in a first, the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) recently asked all companies in the country to mandatorily disclose any dealings in cryptocurrency or virtual currency in their balance sheets.