The move to regulate the trading of cryptocurrency, Bitcoin in India, has made the apex banking institution, RBI and SEBI to enter in a war like situation. As per the sources, the RBI considers bitcoin as a security and not a currency that should be regulated by SEBI. The proposal is on the contrary being opposed by the market watchdog.

A regulatory official from Sebi said, "It (bitcoin) cannot be classified as commodity derivatives as per extant legal provisions," said a regulatory official.

The meeting held last week to discuss about the trading of virtual currency and its regulation provided the stand from RBI that the trading in bitcoin be allowed as a commodity derivative as like gold or silver. Meanwhile the RBI also asked SEBI that any illegal practice in the name of bitcoin trading such as money laundering, terror financing should be checked and regulated.

However, legal experts do not consider virtual currency to be a commodity.

With respect to the trading in bitcoin, with saw huge surge in its value post high liquidity due to demonetization, RBI warned about the potential operational, legal, financial, customer protection as well as security risks to the users, holders as well as traders. Further on February 1, RBI stated that any user, holder, investor or trader dealing with virtual currencies is doing it at their own risk," it had said in a press release.

Goodreturns.in