Ex-ZebPay CEO Avinash Shekhar & WazirX’s Nischal Shetty Launch Crypto Future Trading Platform

Former ZebPay CEO Avinash Shekhar has partnered with WazirX cofounder Nischal Shetty to launch crypto future trading platform Pi42.

Pi42 is a crypto-INR perpetual futures exchange that will offer derivatives trading to Indian investors in Indian rupees, the startup said. Pi42 claimed that its platform eliminates the need for conversion fees and TDS. 

“… Our objective behind launching Pi42 is to provide Indian investors, who are also a strong believer in alternative assets, with a convenient and new-age crypto futures trading opportunity thereby helping them in fulfilling their financial goals,” said cofounder Shetty.

Chiming in, cofounder Avinash Shekhar said, “… We aim to infuse a new life into the industry for the modern-day investors and empower them with a platform that will eventually help them to redefine financial freedom by offering tax-efficient and regulatory compliant trading options. We aspire to be India’s largest and favourite crypto futures trading platform in the next 12 months.”

While the Android app is already in the works, Pi42 plans to launch an iOS app in the near future. Pi42 also claimed to have already secured banking partners to facilitate the said transactions.

The platform aims to expand its reach globally and is looking to tap into the existing 30 Mn Indian crypto investors over the next two to three years.

The launch of the platform comes at a time when the Indian crypto market is reeling under the heavy taxation regime.

Currently, users have to pay a 30% tax on income from crypto and other virtual digital assets (VDAs). Besides, they also have to pay a 1% TDS on every VDA transaction exceeding INR 10,000. 

Since the tax mandates were proposed in 2022, the crypto market in the country has witnessed a sharp decline in transactions. This has resulted in mass layoffs in crypto startups and even closure of small startups. 

Pi42 will mark Shekhar’s second startup launch post leaving the crypto exchange ZebPay in September 2022. He launched his other Web3 startup, TaxNodes, in January 2023 with an eye on simplifying the tax computing process and individual tax compliance. 

“We see the compliance level to grow from here. I feel both businesses will complement with people who subscribe to TaxNodes also partake in futures trading. Similarly, those who are trading on Pi42 will have to file their taxes,” he said. 

The startup is currently bootstrapped. The duo aims to raise more capital in the coming months after ‘gauging market response to the platform’.

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