United States-based cryptocurrency exchange CrossTower is expanding operations to India despite the ongoing legal uncertainty over local crypto regulation.

CrossTower has set up a local division in India and launched a cryptocurrency trading platform to capture the growing multi-billion-dollar market, Reuters reported Monday. CrossTower India has already onboarded 35 employees and is looking to expand its team to 100 people in the next six to nine months.

With $7.6 million in daily trading at the time of writing, CrossTower expects its Indian exchange to contribute to its plans to expand further across the world. “India will play a pivotal role and we plan to use the country as a hub to expand into other geographies,” CrossTower co-founder and CEO Kapil Rathi said.

CrossTower’s entrance into the Indian market comes amid the ongoing uncertainty over the legal status of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin 

BTC

$21,164

 in the country. Several alleged government sources had previously stoked fears of an upcoming crypto ban, reportedly suggesting that the Indian government was planning to impose a blanket ban on the industry.

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Despite this, India’s nationwide investments in crypto surged 600% over the past year, rising from $900 million in April 2020 to $6.6 billion in May 2021.

“We believe we are taking a calculated risk,” Rathi said.