Indian crypto exchange CoinDCX launched Okto, a decentralized finance (DeFi) mobile app, on Friday, aimed at easing the transition of crypto consumers to DeFi, co-founder Neeraj Khandelwal told CoinDesk.

"For crypto to succeed (in India) consumers will have to migrate to Web3 and DeFi setup, and at the moment, it's very complex to access DeFi," said Khandelwal. "First of all, you have to deal with seed phrases and private keys and that's very difficult for a common man to understand. Keeping it safe is another nightmare. And moving assets from one chain to another for a layman is very complex and prone to so many risks."

Okto will aim to help users "securely navigate DeFi and access thousands of tokens from multiple DEXs across chains with its in-built wallet," and "swap crypto anytime, anywhere and maximize their yields with access to the best liquidity pools in DeFi."

As a fully native mobile app, built over months by a team of 50, CoinDCX hopes Okto will provide users access to 100+ protocols and 20+ chains while also seeking transparency in the spirit of helping "users make educated decisions about risks."

The product is keyless because users require only a basic email and phone number which is secured by Multi-Party Computation (MPC) technology by which users can avoid having to manage lengthy private keys.

CoinDCX's Okto launch will take part in two phases. The first involves announcing a waitlist at Unfold, a Web3 tech conference they are hosting this weekend. This will be followed by information uploaded on their website in the lead-up to the second step, a full "launch in a matter of two weeks or so," said Khandelwal.

Okto will be available in India within CoinDCX Pro and as a standalone Okto App globally.

"If it does not happen then it will be very difficult for crypto to take off (in India)," said Khandelwal. "Crypto cannot be just an investment tool."

CoinDCX has been actively advertising and at one point, even roped in Indian mega film star Amitabh Bachchan as a brand ambassador to raise crypto awareness.

UPDATE (Aug. 26, 8:26 UTC): Replaces lead image with more recent photo.