Bitcoin purchases also subject to limits? India's demand is so great that exchanges have no choice but to resort to this measure

The Indian government is working on a legal and regulatory framework for digital currencies, at a time when bitcoin’s popularity and high demand in the country have overwhelmed exchanges.

Like all countries in the world, India has a great demand for Bitcoin, and a large number of domestic media have begun to compete to report on the world's most influential cryptocurrency.

Coinsecure, one of India’s largest exchanges, had to temporarily shut down trading due to high demand and a backlog of unfulfilled orders. The exchange has now resumed operations.

In addition, the scarcity of mining resources in India has also caused prices to soar. Due to insufficient supply, the country currently needs to pay a higher premium to buy Bitcoin. On Thursday, when the price of Bitcoin in the US dollar market hit a new high of $2,750, the price on the Indian exchange was 230,000 rupees, about 3500美元.

Purchase restrictions

Regardless of the premium, the demand for Bitcoin in India remains high, so the supply is severely insufficient and exchanges are currently looking for ways to address this problem. Bitcoin exchange and wallet provider Zebpay has temporarily set a limit on the purchase of Bitcoin.

Zebpay tweeted:

Due to insufficient deposits, we have temporarily set a daily limit of 50,000 rupees for Bitcoin purchases. This provision is temporary and depends on subsequent market conditions.

As Bitcoin continues to move toward mainstream adoption, Zebpay warns new users about the currency’s current volatility.

The current price of the currency is very volatile. Please invest with caution. From a global perspective, this is a brand new technological innovation, but it is still in its early stages. You should make investment decisions based on your own understanding. Beware of risks!

On Friday, Zebpay said its "customer support phone line is flooded with new users," indicating a large number of new users trying to buy the cryptocurrency. Last week, the exchange's app downloads hit a record high, with its Android app installed 500,000 times. Zebpay also said that they are averaging 2,500 new users per day, and this number is rising.

As the Bitcoin boom in India approaches, the government is studying the specific details of digital currency legislation. In April this year, the Indian government set up a special committee to study and research digital currency and give legislative suggestions. Currently, the Indian Ministry of Finance is soliciting legislative suggestions for digital currency from the public.

At press time, the price of Bitcoin on Indian exchanges is around 160,000 rupees, or $2,568 in U.S. dollars. This is about 500美元higher than the price of $2,073 on Bitstamp.