WazirX cofounder denies reports that he plans to leave the firm

According to news reports, WazirX cofounders Shetty (CEO) and Siddharth Menon (COO) had assumed a passive role in the company as both have embarked on ventures other than WazirX.

“Nischal is leading both WazirX as well as Shardeum, and he intends to continue doing so,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.

While Menon announced the launch of his Web3 gaming ecosystem on Tuesday, Shetty announced his involvement in a new blockchain project called Shardeum on February 2.

In an earlier interview, Shetty had told ET that he would divide his time between the two projects, but since Shardeum was a new project, it would require more attention.

According to an industry source, Shetty has moved away from regular involvement in the functioning of the business and does not attend meetings of the Blockchain and Crypto Assets Council (BACC), an industry body where he was actively involved until last year.

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“My role has been the same for the last 12 months; it has been to be someone who’s there to remove roadblocks. I’m never getting deeper into details. Most times, I’m busy with my own work around marketing ideas and what to do next, and other things I’ve been spending most of my time on are also on interviews,” Shetty told ET.

Menon confirmed to ET that while he is playing an active role in the company at the moment, he will assume a passive role in the next 6-8 months.

“I will not immediately move away, but slowly. I think we have a very strong team that’s working on interesting things while I sort of focus on new markets and try to grow the Web3 ecosystem in India,” Menon told ET.

Shetty said the company was looking to hire multiple senior executives across various functions, including top management.

WazirX was acquired by global crypto exchange Binance in 2019.

Typically, after acquisitions, founders are in a lock-in for some time, after which they transition out.

Crypto exchanges and the wider industry have been under pressure after finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in the budget that gains arising from transactions in private crypto assets will be taxed at a flat rate of 30%, with no exemption or deduction.

TDS at the rate of 1% has also been proposed on payments made on transfer of digital assets.

Meanwhile, Reserve Bank of India deputy governor T Rabi Sankar called for an outright ban on private cryptocurrencies at the IBA Banking Technology Awards on February 14.