Coinbase Gains Antitrust Approval for Minor Stake in Indian Exchange CoinDCX

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India’s competition regulator has granted approval for Coinbase’s proposed acquisition of a minority stake in the domestic cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX. This decision strengthens the US exchange’s ongoing efforts to expand its operations within the Indian market.

The Competition Commission of India confirmed the approval in a notice published on Tuesday. It stated that it has cleared the proposed transaction involving Coinbase Global Inc.’s investment into DCX Global Limited, the parent entity of CoinDCX.

Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, acknowledged the development in a social media post on Wednesday. He stated the approval represents a significant regulatory step and deepens Coinbase’s partnership with what he called one of India’s most established and trusted digital asset platforms.

Coinbase initially announced its strategic investment in CoinDCX last October, aiming to bolster its presence in India and the Middle East. While the exact financial details were not disclosed by Coinbase, CoinDCX has publicly stated the deal valued the exchange at approximately $2.45 billion.

This regulatory green light comes several months after CoinDCX experienced a security breach, where attackers used a social engineering scheme to install malware on a company device, leading to a theft of roughly $44 million.