Binance, WazirX ownership row has crypto users in knots

Approximately 15 million of the registered customers of the Indian cryptocurrency exchange have been affected by a public conflict between WazirX founders Nischal Shetty and CEO of global cryptocurrency platform Binance Changpeng Zhao. According to a user screenshot that has been examined, Binance blocked off-chain transfers to WazirX a day later, cutting off users’ ability to transfer money between the two exchanges internally.

Young cryptocurrency investors have expressed concern about the security of their funds on WazirX and the effects of a strained relationship between the two companies after their portfolios were severely damaged by a decrease in cryptocurrency values and India’s onerous tax structure. Khandelwal, who exited the crypto market at a loss of 78 percent on her total assets, continued, “I do not think I will return to crypto even to explore with a tiny amount of money till and unless the crypto field is a bit controlled in India. According to Rajagopal Menon, vice president of WazirX, consumers’ cryptocurrency is secure.

“We are the only cryptocurrency exchange in India that permits full cryptocurrency withdrawals, which demonstrates our financial stability and the soundness of our business plan. On Friday, the Directorate of Enforcement searched one of Zanmai Lab Pvt Ltd’s directors and ordered the freezing of Rs 64 worth of the company’s bank accounts. Zanmai Lab Pvt Ltd is the company that runs WazirX. Structuring Since Friday, CZ of Binance and Shetty, the creator of WazirX, have been exchanging barbs on Twitter on the ownership claim made by WazirX and Zanmai Labs, as well as the implications of that ownership. Following the ED move on Friday, CZ announced its first public distancing from the activities of the Indian exchange since announcing the purchase of WazirX in 2019.

The two businesses concur that WazirX Technology was acquired by Binance in 2019 and that Shetty and the other cofounders fully operate and own Zanmai Labs. In 2019, when trading on cryptocurrency exchanges in the nation was all but destroyed, the Binance-WazirX merger took place against the backdrop of a banking ban by the Reserve Bank of India. According to Shetty’s Twitter feed, the last part of the acquisition has been delayed since Binance hasn’t disclosed its parent company. The regulatory uncertainties in India, a lawyer told ET, may have led to the WazirX founders taking on more legal risks if the acquisition had been handled in an “amphibious” way.

“If you take away the IP and the platform from any IT company, there is nothing left of value; Binance has taken everything away. Exchange-to-exchange transfers Users no longer have access to internal fund transfers between the two exchanges as a result of Binance’s Sunday disablement of off-chain transactions to WazirX. In response to declining volumes brought on by the implementation of 1 percent Tax Deducted at Source on cryptocurrency transactions, WazirX began charging a fee to move money from WazirX to Binance, according to a business blog post from July. The “weak regulatory oversight of transactions between WazirX and Binance, non-recording of transactions on blockchains to minimize costs,” was a concern voiced by ED on Friday.