India has been trying to figure out how to tax crypto for quite some time now. In the midst of all the discussions and ambiguity, 11 crypto exchanges have been fined for evasion of GST for a collective 81.54 crores.
This information came to light when a minister of the Lok Sabha asked the minister of finance certain questions regarding cryptocurrency exchanges.
The Minister of State of Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, answered to the Lok Sabha that the Central Goods and Services (CGST) authority has fined 11 digital asset platforms with 81.54 crores and recovered 95.86 crores, including interest and penalty.
The minister also stated that the government does not collect any data regarding cryptocurrency exchanges and this fine was imposed by CGST, a department under the Central Board of Indirect Taxes (CBIT).
Out of the 11 exchanges fined, almost half the amount was owed by WAZIRX (owned by Zanmai Labs). Acquired by Binance in 2019, the crypto exchange owed a massive amount of 40.51 crores in taxes and paid a total of 49.18 crores in recovery.
CoinDCX followed with a default of 15.70 crores and 17.10 crores paid in recovery. The list also included CoinSwitch Kuber, Flitpay, UnoCoin, Zebpay and several others.
India has been cracking down its tax whip on all spheres of crypto. Just a few days ago, the Finance Bill was approved by the Parliament for implementation which imposes a 30% tax on all crypto profits and a 1% TDS at the source.
