Google Play Store in India Bans Binance, OKX in Response to FIU Notice

India's Google Play Store has removed crypto exchange apps Binance and OKX after the government issued a non-compliance notice against them. The removal follows a similar decision by the Indian Apple App Store in December 2023.

On December 28, 2023, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Indian Ministry of Finance issued notices to Binance, Huobi, Kraken, Gate.io, KuCoin, Bitstamp, MEXC Global, Bittrex and Bitfinex for operating illegally in India.

The FIU notification to Indian users states that any exchange transaction must be registered as a “reporting entity” and submit returns to the Income Tax department. FIU has proposed to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to suspend the mentioned money exchange websites for non-compliance with the regulations.

Although the Google Play Store has blocked Binance and OKX, the Binance app and website are still available to existing users.

Related: Apple India bans 9 other crypto exchanges Binance after FIU announcement

In a post by X (formerly Twitter), Binance South Asia said it was aware of the shutdown of the India app and assured users that their accounts and funds are safe.

After India imposed a 30% tax on crypto and a 1% tax deduction for every crypto trade, volume on crypto exchanges fell, and Indian users rushed to foreign crypto exchanges to avoid the high tax regime.

The Indian Finance Bill 2022 was passed by Parliament in March 2022, amending the tax rules and creating a 30% tax on cryptocurrency holdings and transfers. Additionally, traders cannot offset losses against profits, and each trading pair is treated separately for tax purposes.

Cointelegraph has reached out to Binance for comments but has yet to receive a response.

Magazine: 6 Questions for 20-Year-Old Celix Founder Daniel Servade