What the WazirX-Binance rift is, and what it means for Indian crypto investors

moneycontrol.com:

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volumes, proudly announced it had ‘acquired’ WazirX, in a blog post on November 21, 2019, however Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao has now shocked the Indian crypto exchange and the global crypto community by reneging on the agreement between the two parties.

Amidst an ongoing war of words between WazirX founder Nischal Shetty, and Zhao, investors are searching for defining answers about who controls WazirX and how the move will impact their crypto and fiat holdings.

Connection between Binance and WazirX

With a group photograph that included Changpeng and Nischal profusely smiling, the November 2019 blog post announced WazirX’s acquisition by Binance and detailed how platform users would be able to buy crypto currencies using Indian rupees (INR), invest in stable coins like Tether (USDT) and access the whole range of cryptocurrencies directly through Binance’s trading platforms.

It also explicitly said that the acquisition and integration of WazirX is part of the company’s strategy to enhance its growing list of global partners in an effort to provide the global crypto community with easy access to crypto currencies in a fast and secure manner.

Zhao even went further to elaborate on Binance’s commitment to developing the Indian crypto ecosystem and making India a global blockchain innovation centre. Nischal commented on how the acquisition gives WazirX the opportunity to expand beyond India and cater to audiences in other developing nations by building fiat on-ramps.

Why is Binance distancing itself from WazirX?

WazirX is currently under the Enforcement Directorate (ED) radar, for allegedly assisting instant loan app companies in laundering money. In fact, the agency has