Cryptocurrency exchange ByBit has resolved compliance issues in India and is expected to resume its services soon.
According to a February 5 announcement, the exchange has officially registered with India’s Financial Intelligence Unit as a reporting entity.
As such, the exchange has agreed to comply with the country’s anti-money laundering under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2005.
Indian crypto enthusiasts welcomed the news, with some calling it a win for crypto adoption in the country.
Meanwhile, ByBit CEO Ben Zhou described the development as “good news” for Indian traders.
The registration comes roughly a month after the exchange announced it would temporarily halt services for Indian customers.
At the time, the exchange said it was suspending services due to regulatory requirements, restricting Indian users from opening new crypto or fiat trades, accessing trading products, or participating in campaigns.
Existing derivatives positions were placed in “close-only” mode, allowing users to exit but not modify or add to their positions.
Additionally, the exchange removed peer-to-peer trading ads in INR, cancelled copy trading relationships, and deactivated all trading bots by January 13. Withdrawals, however, remained unaffected during the suspension.
Meanwhile, the FIU has imposed a $1.06 Million fine on the Dubai-headquartered platform through a January 31 order for operating without a license.
The decision reportedly followed a thorough review of ByBit, with FIU Director Vivek Aggarwal concluding that the exchange had violated multiple PMLA regulations.
As of publication time, there has been no official word from the crypto exchange on whether the fine has been settled.
Last year, in July, the exchange also applied for a Virtual Digital Asset Service Provider license in India and is currently awaiting approval.
Regulatory hiccups across the globe
ByBit has faced compliance challenges in other jurisdictions as well.
It suspended its services in the United Kingdom in September 2023, right before the deadline for crypto firms to comply with the country’s promotion and advertising laws.
The same year, it moved out of the Canadian market amidst compliance challenges, while in France, it ceased operation the following year after it failed to secure proper licensing.
Last year in December, it paused services in Malaysia.
Offshore exchanges under scrutiny in India
Prior to ByBit, Binance and KuCoin were two major exchanges that had registered with the FIU after a ban was imposed on nine foreign exchanges in December 2023.
According to the regulator, these platforms had been violating anti-money laundering policies.
Since March 2023, the Indian government has required all crypto exchanges, including offshore exchanges, to register under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
Binance had to pay a fine of $2.25 million before it was allowed to resume its services in August 2024, while KuCoin paid a little over $40,000 for past non-compliance.
The FIU has also probed foreign exchanges to recoup unpaid taxes.
According to earlier reports, seven offshore exchanges, including Bitfinex, MEXC Global, Kraken, Huobi, Gate.io, Bittrex, and Bitstamp, owed the government INR 2900 crores (approximately $331.85 million) in goods and services tax.
The post ByBit registers with India’s Financial Intelligence Unit following trading suspension appeared first on Invezz
https://invezz.com/news/2025/02/05/bybit-registers-with-indias-financial-intelligence-unit-following-trading-suspension/
