Coinbase Co-Founder Sees India as Key Market for Expansion

Coinbase Doubles Down on India with Ambitious Growth Plans

Coinbase, the global cryptocurrency exchange, is doubling down on India after a three-year absence, positioning the market at the center of its international growth strategy. The company has launched IMPS-enabled INR deposits and is exploring opportunities across retail and institutional segments as competition in the sector intensifies.

Coinbase is back in India after nearly three years, and according to John O'Loghlen, Head of APAC, the company is not late to the market. "We are very excited to be back," O'Loghlen said. "Right now, it's a rising tide, and a huge opportunity. We are an international exchange here with INR rails, so we think that's a major differentiator."

Since opening new registrations in India six months ago, Coinbase has seen a healthy response from users. The company had a crypto-to-crypto offering in place, which was a limitation for those without existing cryptocurrency. With INR and fiat rails, users can now enter the space without needing to have cryptocurrency already. Coinbase reports that the response has been "very healthy" and that the company is "excited" about the growth.

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The competition in India is intensifying, with Binance, KuCoin, Bybit, and domestic exchanges entering the market aggressively. However, Coinbase is not worried about the competition. "Our North Star has always been our global expertise," O'Loghlen said. "Robust institutional-grade security that people like BlackRock use. We bring that to Indian everyday users, that same level of compliance, governance, and cybersecurity."

India is a key market for Coinbase, and the company is committed to growth in the country. "India is very much a North Star for international growth for the next foreseeable future," O'Loghlen said. "We haven't opened an international market in the last year, and we won't open another one for the next 12 months. So, this 24-month period, we're incredibly focused on India."

Coinbase is also investing heavily in India's blockchain ecosystem through its Layer 2 blockchain platform, Base. The company has invested over $1 million in building the platform and has seen significant growth, with over 4,000 builders in India building on Base and around 150 projects growing into startups.

Coinbase's India Expansion Roadmap

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Coinbase's "Everything Exchange" strategy is a key part of its India expansion plan, which includes equities, tokenized equities, DEX, and DeFi products. The company is also looking to launch DeFi lend and DeFi borrow products, which will allow users to leverage their digital assets without selling them.

In December, Coinbase met with regulators in Delhi to discuss its plans for India. The company is hoping to see a regulatory roadmap and framework emerge in the country. "We want to lean in as a trusted advisor to all parts of government," O'Loghlen said. "We met the government in December and presented our technical views. We see that as green shoots - a nice inclusion of commentary on various digital assets, which hasn't happened before."

Coinbase is also seeing interest from institutional investors in India. "We certainly have a strong demand from institutions in India," O'Loghlen said. "They work with our teams in Singapore who cover those markets. Those teams are in and out of the market every week."

The company is expanding its teams in India, with a focus on hiring local talent in areas such as AI, cybersecurity, compliance, and marketing. Coinbase Ventures is also investing in Indian crypto startups, with recent investments in CoinDCX and CoinSwitch.

"We see India among the biggest opportunities in crypto," O'Loghlen said. "We are investing for the long term. CoinDCX is one of several Indian companies we have backed."