[Funding Alert] Crypto Exchange CoinDCX Raises $2.5 Million The investment will further boost the company's efforts to increase cryptocurrency adoption in India.
By Debroop Roy
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Cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX has raised $2.5 million in strategic investment led by Polychain Capital. The round also saw the participation of Coinbase Ventures, the investment arm of San Francisco-based cryptocurrency giant Coinbase.
Founded in 2018, the platform provides instant fiat to crypto conversions with zero fees. Its liquidity aggregation model provides users the access to liquidity from global crypto exchanges.
"This new strategic investment into CoinDCX is a shot of confidence in our roadmap toward bringing the crypto asset class to a largely untapped Indian market," said co-founder and chief executive officer Sumit Gupta, in a statement.
Lifting of RBI Ban
The same year that the company launched, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) banned the use of banking channels for cryptocurrency transactions.
The ban was quashed by the Supreme Court earlier this year.
Following the lifting of the ban, CoinDCX said it has witnessed 10x growth in sign-ups in one week, 47 per cent growth in trading volumes and 150 per cent growth in daily active users in March alone. It also claims it was the first cryptocurrency exchange in India to integrate bank account transfers on its exchange.
"As India continues to close the gap between the cryptoeconomy and the mainstream market, CoinDCX is strongly positioned to become the leading platform that consumers in the country interact with crypto through," said Shan Aggarwal, head of Coinbase Ventures.
Apart from building the exchange and furthering its capabilities, the fresh funding will also support the company's $1.3 million TryCrypto initiative, which includes educational initiatives, meetup events, community engagements, and consumer campaigns. Part of it will include a roll out of Academy, a blockchain and cryptocurrency learning program for first-time and novice cryptocurrency traders.
The initiative is aimed at bringing the total number of crypto users in India to 50 million.
"We have worked closely with CoinDCX from an early stage, and have continued to be impressed by the team and vision. Their thoughtful insights into the Indian market as well as their long-term product roadmap have strengthened our belief in the potential of the business," said Olaf Carlson-Wee, founder of Polychain Capital.
Polychain had also recently led the company's $3 million Series A round, which included participation from Bain Capital Ventures and HDR Group.
