India's GST authorities target cryptocurrency platforms, uncovering ₹824.14 Crore in tax evasion

Indian authorities have initiated a significant crackdown on cryptocurrency exchanges, booking a total of 17 platforms for Goods and Services Tax (GST) evasion amounting to ₹824.14 crore. This was disclosed by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary during a session in Parliament on December 2.

Among the notable cases, Nest Services Ltd, affiliated with the Binance Group, faces a staggering ₹722.43 crore in tax evasion allegations. The government has successfully recovered ₹122.29 crore through interest, penalties, and taxes related to these cases. The Central GST formations specifically identified ₹40.51 crore in evasion from Zanmai Labs Pvt (WazirX), ₹16.84 crore from CoinDCX, and ₹14.13 crore from CoinSwitch Kuber.

The investigation has also extended to individual investors in virtual digital assets, with four cases leading to the detection of ₹1.76 crore in evasion and the recovery of ₹2.40 crore in taxes, penalties, and interest.

Minister Chaudhary further stated that 47 Virtual Digital Asset Service Providers (VDA SPs) have been registered as Reporting Entities with the Financial Intelligence Unit-India under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.