- Coinbase India halted INR withdrawals due to a banking partner outage affecting payouts
- Users report being unable to transfer funds to bank accounts for over five days
- Unocoin and ZebPay also face withdrawal delays linked to their banking partners
Coinbase, Unocoin, ZebPay users in India will be unable to withdraw rupees from the cryptocurrency exchange for days, after an outage at its banking partner disrupted payouts.
The US-based exchange has temporarily suspended Indian rupee (INR) withdrawals and has not said when the service will resume. Users on social media say they have been unable to move money to their bank accounts for more than five days.
In a post on X on Saturday, Coinbase India said the problem lay with its bank, not the exchange. “INR withdrawals are temporarily unavailable due to an outage at our banking partner. The outage is affecting the bank's payouts for all of its clients, not just Coinbase,” it said.
The company sought to reassure users that their money was not at risk. “Your funds are safe,” it said, adding that INR deposits, including through UPI, and bank account linking were working normally. Coinbase said it was working with the bank “around the clock” to get withdrawals running again.
Several users have aired their frustration online over the delay. Some have asked the exchange to bring in other banking partners so that a single outage does not hold up withdrawals for days.
Other Exchanges Hit Too
Coinbase is not alone. Unocoin reportedly stopped all deposits and withdrawals on November 9, without saying when they would restart.
ZebPay told customers on November 11 that rupee withdrawals were taking longer because of technical problems at its banking partner. Its withdrawals, however, are reportedly still being processed, just at a slower pace.
The back-to-back disruptions have once again exposed how heavily crypto exchanges depend on banks when users want to cash out.
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Months After India Expansion
The outage comes about five months after Coinbase expanded its India business. In June, it began offering direct INR deposits and withdrawals, along with spot and perpetual futures trading.
To do this, the exchange connected with Indian banks through the Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), so users could move money directly between their accounts and the platform. The aim was to cut reliance on peer-to-peer trades and third-party intermediaries. Coinbase is also registered with India's Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU-IND).
The sector continues to operate under close regulatory watch. In June, the RBI's deputy governors cautioned financial institutions about the risks tied to virtual digital assets, and advised them against direct exposure to crypto firms.
India taxes gains from such assets at 30 percent, and levies a 1 percent tax deducted at source on applicable transactions.
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