Using diamond anvil cell (DAC) technique, in situ high-pressure Raman scattering and energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDXRD) experiments were used at room temperature to study 3C-SiC with an average grain size of 30 nm. In contrast to its bulk counterpart, a decrease of the Born's transverse effective charge of these nanocrystals was observed with increasing pressure from measurements of the longitudinal and transverse optical phonon modes (longitudinal optical-transverse optical) splitting. This is therefore indicative of a diminishing ionicity of nanocrystalline 3C-SiC on compression.