WazirX, India’s largest crypto exchange in terms of trading volume, has announced the appointment of Chunmun Gupta as Chief of Staff.
Gupta’s appointment comes at a time when there have been reports that WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty and co-founder Siddharth Menon have relocated to Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
She will effectively enhance the CEO’s office to execute daily business operations and drive key strategic initiatives in her new role. According to the exchange, she will also be actively involved in dialogue management with key external stakeholders on important issues and assist in business development activities.
Speaking on the appointment, Shetty said, “We are delighted to have Gupta in a role that is instrumental in the growth and development of the organisation. With his rich understanding of the startup space, we look forward to his insights to strengthen the business from a strategic and tactical perspective. We strongly believe she will be a great asset to the team and help accelerate our growth momentum.”
Gupta has previously served as Chief of Staff at Razorpay, a fintech company with presence in India and Southeast Asia. At Razorpay, he led strategic initiatives, revenue management, business performance and effectiveness, and built new business capabilities.
Gupta commented, “It is exciting to be part of the country’s leading crypto exchange. WazirX has been instrumental in the growth of the Indian crypto landscape. Their relentless focus on meeting the needs of their clients is what really sets them apart. I am part of the journey. I look forward to being and taking the company to new heights.”
He holds a master’s degree in financial engineering from Cornell University and a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Thapar University.
WazirX is the largest crypto exchange in India by volume and has over 11 million users.
The outlook for the crypto industry in India has turned sour due to the lack of regulations for crypto assets and high taxation on this asset class, which was introduced in the Union Budget of 2022. In the first 10 days of April, trading volume on Indian crypto exchanges fell in the range of 50-70%.
Experts say that crypto exchanges are expected to be hit further when 1% Tax at Source (TDS) will be deducted on every crypto transaction from July 1.