Nischal Shetty, the founder of WazirX, and Avinash Shekhar, former CEO of Zebpay, have unveiled their latest venture, Pi42, a crypto-INR futures exchange aimed at alleviating concerns regarding tax deducted at source (TDS) for crypto investors.

This launch coincides with anticipation within the crypto industry, spurred by the US SEC's recent approval of a Bitcoin ETF and the upcoming Bitcoin halving event in 2024. With these developments, the industry is poised for potential market expansion.

Platform Features and Offerings

Registered under the Financial Intelligence Unit - India (FIU-IND), Pi42 offers various trading options, including margin trading, stop-loss orders, and advanced risk management tools. Currently, the platform provides trading for five tokens: Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, MATIC, and XRP.

Retail investors can access the crypto market with leverage of up to 20x without expiry dates.

Crypto futures exchanges enable investors to speculate and trade on the future price movements of cryptocurrencies.

According to Money Control, investors holding tokens for longer can avoid the 1 percent TDS typically associated with spot trading transactions.

Future Expansion Plans

Following its launch in India, Pi42 aims to expand its presence across key global markets, targeting over 30 million Indian crypto investors over the next 2-3 years. Nischal Shetty, co-founder of Pi42, highlighted the maturation of the Indian crypto ecosystem, emphasizing the need for more sophisticated trading products like futures. He stated, "This is also the first time that a platform is offering crypto futures trading using INR."

Avinash Shekhar initiated work on Pi42 in August last year. Initially, Shetty and Zebpay CEO Rahul Pagidipati were angel investors in the project.

According to the Times of India, Shetty, previously a competitor to Shekhar as WazirX's CEO, eventually joined as a co-founder of Pi42.

Accessible Platforms

Currently, Pi42 is available on web and Android platforms, with an iOS version in development, ensuring accessibility across various devices for crypto investors.

Photo: Nick Chong/Unsplash