RBI says it has not authorised use of Bitcoins; flags risks

The Reserve Bank on Wednesday said it has not authorised dealings in or use of virtual currencies, and cautioned those investing in the instruments like Bitcoins.

"The Reserve Bank advises that it has not given any licence/authorisation to any entity/company to operate such schemes or deal with Bitcoin or any virtual currency. As such, any user, holder, investor, trader etc dealing with virtual currencies will be doing so at their own risk," it said in a statement.

Those investing in such virtual currencies are exposing themselves to potential financial, operational, legal, customer protection and security related risks, it warned.

The apex bank also drew attention to a December 2013 notification cautioning the investors against the same.

RBI had said then that the virtual currencies stored in e-wallets were exposed to hacking and in the absence of any regulations, users were exposed to lack of recourse in case of any problems or disputes.

The central bank had also flagged issues surrounding valuation, saying there was no underlying asset and there was lots of speculation in it, and those who trade on unregulated platforms face legal and financial risks.