The UK-based Cashaa, an online banking platform to manage fiat and cryptocurrency, plans to launch its India operations early next month, offering loans for and against crypto assets.
The company has tied up with the United Multistate Credit Co-operative Society to have launched Unicas, the world's first crypto-friendly financial institution with physical branches in India.
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This move has raised brows within the financial circle as the company has taken the credit cooperative society route when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) frowns on private virtual currencies.
Although the Supreme Court overturned the Reserve Bank of India's crypto-related order last year, some Indian lenders remain wary of cryptos and have advised their customers not to use their services for crypto-related transactions.
To get a pie of the growing crypto market in India, the company will be releasing personal account services by mid of August, coinciding with India's Independence Day.
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"We planned to release it during Independence week as a symbol of the freedom of money. We will start issuing cards to account holders by the end of this year," Cashaa said in a statement.
"The company will provide savings accounts in both Indian rupees and cryptos, loans for investing in cryptos, lending against cryptos, and card services. We plan to have over 1000 branches in India in the next three years and are working on tie-ups with other cooperatives," Kumar Gaurav, CEO Cashaa told ABP News in an exclusive interview.
When asked about RBI approval for its entry into India, Kumar Gaurav said that United operates as a multi-state cooperative society and thus does not require the central bank's permission for this model.
According to Cashaa, Indian banks appear to be cracking down on cryptocurrency and exchanges, although cryptocurrencies have not been formally banned in India. Banks are halting transfers to crypto-related accounts, causing Indian crypto exchanges to struggle to keep fiat coming in. As a result, these exchanges are now turning to Cashaa for fiat services.
The government is likely to table Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill, 2021, in the parliament during the monsoon session.
Cashaa claims to have the largest market share of crypto banking in Europe, with over 200 crypto companies banking. In addition to the Unicas venture in India, Cashaa will launch its services for personal users in the United States, United Kingdom, and Europe in 2021, powered by the CAS token.