Crypto Friendly Xapo Bank Expands to India, Rest of South Asia

Gibraltar-based crypto friendly private bank Xapo is to expand across India and the rest of South Asia in a sign of considerable expansion for the provision of cryptocurrency services in the region.

Xapo is to begin accepting members across South Asia, offering services such as its USD offshore savings account offering 4.1% interest and a bitcoin wallet, offering 1% on BTC deposits, according to an emailed announcement on Thursday.

"This is in line with the positive shifts we are witnessing in Asia’s evolving crypto landscape, as well as our mission to make transacting transparently and securely from anywhere in the world as simple as it can be for our members," CEO Seamus Rocca said.

India has a somewhat mixed relationship with crypto, with transactions subject to a 30% capital gains tax and a 1% tax deducted at source (TDS) provision. However, its status as the world's most populous country and the presence of over 100 million crypto users make it hard to ignore for cryptocurrency firms.

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