"We have also seen that cryptocurrencies are not amenable to definition as a currency, asset or commodity; they have no underlying cash flows, they have no intrinsic value; that they are akin to Ponzi schemes, and may be even be worse," T Rabi Sankar said in a speech.

"All these factors lead to the conclusion that banning cryptocurrency is perhaps the most advisable choice open to India," he added.

The country's central bank chief last week delivered a stark warning against investing in cryptocurrencies, saying they lacked the underlying value of even a tulip - in a reference to a speculative bubble that gripped the Netherlands in the 17th century.

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