Tax notice sent to investors in Bitcoin by I-T

Tech-savvy young investors, real estate players and jewellers are among those invested in bitcoin and other virtual currencies, tax officials said after gathering data from nine exchanges in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Pune. 

Governments around the world are grappling with how to regulate cryptocurrency trading, and policymakers are expected to discuss the matter at a G20 summit in Argentina in March. 

The Indian government has issued repeated warnings against digital currency investments, saying these were like “Ponzi schemes” that offer unusually high returns to early investors. But it has not so far imposed curbs on an industry estimated to be adding 200,000 users in India every month. 

BR Balakrishnan, a director general of investigations at the income tax department in Karnataka, said notices were sent following the survey to assess the penetration and patterns of virtual currency trade.