Coinbase Inc., a US-listed crypto trading platform, announced that it had invested $150 million in Indian technology companies in the crypto and Web3 sectors, with ambitions to hire over 1,000 people in the country hub this year. Web3 is a blockchain-based, decentralised internet.
Coinbase’s aspirations to expand into India coincided with the country’s adoption of crypto-asset tax regulations. For the first time, a 30% tax on gains from crypto assets will be imposed in India, with a 1% TDS imposed on every transfer of such assets.
Brian Armstrong, co-founder and CEO of Coinbase, posted on Medium, an online publishing platform, that the business will host a crypto community event in Bengaluru on April 7 to discuss the future of crypto and web3 in India.
In addition, Coinbase Ventures, the company’s investment arm, has teamed up with Builders Tribe to organise a business pitch event on April 8.
“India has built a robust identity and digital payments infrastructure and implemented it at rapid scale and speed. Combined with India’s world class software talent, we believe that crypto and web3 technology can help accelerate India’s economic and financial inclusion goals,” Armstrong said.
Armstrong is in India this week, where he will meet with students from top universities, crypto founders, Indian entrepreneurs, and crypto evangelists.
Coinbase’s Indian tech hub opened last year and now employs over 300 people worldwide.
