Coinbase just flipped the switch on direct Indian rupee bank transfers, letting users in India deposit and withdraw funds through the country’s Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) network. It’s a move that effectively removes the biggest friction point for Indian crypto traders on the platform: getting money in and out without jumping through hoops.
The integration gives Indian users access to spot markets, perpetual futures, and Coinbase’s Advanced Trade interface, all from a single platform connected to local bank accounts. For a market with roughly 150 million crypto users, that’s a big deal.
From regulatory exile to banking rails
Here’s the thing. Coinbase’s history in India has been, to put it gently, complicated.
The exchange made its initial push into the Indian market in 2022, and it went about as smoothly as a screen door on a submarine. The company struggled to integrate UPI, India’s dominant payments infrastructure, for rupee deposits. Operations effectively stalled within days of launch. Not the grand entrance anyone had in mind.
