Unocoin recently launched its first ever Application Programming Interface (API) to drive global commerce while boosting digital currency markets in India. After raising $1.5 million, a record in India, this advancement represents another milestone in Unocoin’s continued efforts to fuel the world’s largest potential market for Bitcoin.
Through Unocoin’s API, individuals and companies in India can generate bitcoin wallets; buy, sell, send and receive bitcoin; securely store bitcoin; access real-time or historical price information; receive notifications for payments; facilitate merchant bitcoin payments; fulfil KYC requirements; as well as serve as a conduit for global companies seeking to remit bitcoin to India.
The Unocoin API underwent rigorous testing and is primed for active use. The company’s robust iOS app and soon-to-be-released Android app are both built entirely off of the Unocoin API.
Started in 2013, Unocoin is a Bangalore-based technology startup that’s widely recognized as India’s first entrant into the Bitcoin industry. The company operates India’s largest BTC-INR trading platform, which is designed to empower Indians to buy, sell, store, use and accept bitcoin. Unocoin is also known for its new Merchant Gateway, a means for businesses, traders, e-commerce shops, NGOs and freelancers to utilize Bitcoin as a payment mechanism for their products and services.
The company now has more than 30 employees on staff, and each month Unocoin processes bitcoin transactions worth more than 200 million INR ($2.95 million USD) for its 100,000 plus customers.
Company Co-Founder and CEO, Sathvik Vishwanath describes the API as an “on-ramp for firms looking for a simple way to gain entry into one of the world’s fastest growing and largest potential markets.” He says that the Unocoin team worked nonstop prior to and during their Pre-Series A funding round to develop the most reliable, full featured API possible — one that is incredibly easy to adopt.
Unocoin hopes to capitalize on India’s meteoric growth rate, generally considered by many economists to be the fastest in the world. As blockchain and Bitcoin adoption mirrors this climb, new financial platforms are needed to process secure transactions. Unocoin’s API will allow companies seeking to plug in anywhere in the world to gain access to India’s flourishing bitcoin market and remittance industry, estimated at around $100 billion.
Paycase, a Canadian-based, mobile-first remittance application, and Blockstream’s Liquid network are among the first to integrate Unocoin’s API to deliver fast and low cost money transfers from Canada to India.
“India represents a massive growth opportunity for Bitcoin, and Unocoin is on the cutting edge of Bitcoin and blockchain technology,” said Dr. Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream. “We’re excited to be working with Unocoin on Liquid and believe the company has the potential to bring Bitcoin to millions of new users based on their technology vision and business execution.”
In an interview with Bitcoin Magazine, Vishwanath added that while Bitcoin technology has become a revolutionary opportunity for many individuals, businesses and economies, India still lacked a comprehensive platform to buy and sell bitcoins.
“We believe that we’re at the dawn of a new evolution where money itself is being reinvented. Building the Unocoin platform brings us one step closer to putting bitcoin in the hands of billions. We are confident that this will further alter the landscape allowing for greater remittance and e-commerce adoption in India.”
According to Vishwanath, Unocoin’s recent momentum mirrors the current environment for Bitcoin and blockchain innovation in India, which he says is still in a growth stage. “India has the largest gold, inward remittance and IT markets in the world, all of which make it a perfect home for Bitcoin and blockchain technology. We love seeing so many of the smartest cryptographers, mathematicians and computer scientists from all over the world working together to scale. These are exciting times for sure.”
