Share this article

India Identifies 11 Crypto Exchanges Accused of Tax Evasion

India’s tax authority first began seizing assets to address alleged tax evasion late last year and initially identified six exchanges.

Updated May 11, 2023, 4:58 p.m. Published Mar 28, 2022, 4:21 p.m.
India (Kriangkrai Thitimakorn/Getty Images)
India (Kriangkrai Thitimakorn/Getty Images)

India’s tax authority has seized Rs. 95.86 crore (US$12.6 million) from 11 crypto exchanges on allegations of tax evasion.

The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), which oversees tax collection in India, had previously seized around Rs. 84 crore (about $11.0 million) in taxes and a further Rs. 1.1 crore ($145,000) in penalties, CoinDesk reported in January. India’s Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said the figure was closer to 95.86 crore ($12.6 million) in a statement Monday.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the State of Crypto Newsletter today. See all newsletters

Chaudhary was initially asked to detail the tax seizures by a member of India’s Parliament.

jwp-player-placeholder

In January, DGGI only confirmed seizing funds from six crypto exchanges, including India's largest exchanges: WazirX, CoinDCX, BuyUCoin and Unocoin. On Monday, Chaudhary updated the figure to 11 exchanges.

Advertisement

In January, India’s tax authority had conducted searches on WazirX, CoinSwitch Kuber, CoinDCX, BuyUCoin and Unocoin after what it deemed to be tax evasion of Rs. 40.5 crore ($5.3 million). The tax authority said in a statement the case was part of a special anti-tax evasion drive.

The country is not just cracking down on tax evasion, but has also introduced tough new crypto tax rules. By April, 1 Indian crypto companies will have to pay a capital gains tax of 30% on crypto transactions. In addition to the capital gains tax, Indians buying or selling crypto will have to pay a 1% tax deducted at the source by July 1.

Read more: ‘We Have Entered a Period of Pain,’ Says WazirX CEO of India’s New Tax Laws

More For You

Growth, Trust and Global Adoption on Display at Fastex Harmony VI Meetup

Fastex logo

More For You

Image overlay test glitch two

alt

Dek: Image overlay test glitch two