WazirX Claims Binance Lied About Ownership As Conflict Over India’s Biggest Exchange Heats Up
- Brandon Davis
- January 29, 2023
- Crypto, News
- 0 Comments
WazirX, India’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has accused Binance of lying about its ownership of the Indian platform. The dispute between the two companies began when Binance announced in November 2019 that it had acquired WazirX. However, WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty has now claimed that the acquisition never took place and that Binance has falsely represented itself as the owner of the Indian exchange.
According to Shetty, Binance approached WazirX in late 2019 with an offer to acquire the company, but the deal fell through after Binance failed to meet the terms of the agreement. Despite this, Binance announced the acquisition in November 2019, leading to confusion and frustration among WazirX users.
Shetty provided evidence of an email chain between Binance US CEO and WazirX’s VP of finance regarding an amended “share purchase agreement” from January 13, 2020, which grants Binance ownership of certain WazirX accounts.
Dispute Between Binance and WazirX Could Harm Growth of the Indian Crypto Market
Binance initially celebrated the acquisition of WazirX but later publicly distanced itself from the company and denied owning any equity in it. Binance demanded that WazirX retract previous statements about Binance’s ownership and remove mentions of Binance in its terms of service.
WazirX pushed back and called Binance’s demands “unethical” and an attempt to use “media pressure and threats” to force false and misleading statements. The Indian crypto market is still developing, and a dispute like this could harm its growth. Binance and WazirX must resolve their differences promptly to maintain trust in the Indian crypto market.
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