ICAI to come out with concept paper on virtual currencies

There are rising concerns about investments in virtual currencies such as bitcoins, which have seen significant volatility in trading globally, while there is no framework yet in India to regulate such activities.

A committee, chaired by Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, is looking into all the issues related to virtual currencies and crypto-assets.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is also looking into the issue of virtual currencies.

"We are coming out with a concept paper on virtual currency... We are developing accounting and auditing standards also but it takes time. It is too early to say anything as of now," Gupta said.

He formally took over as the president this week.

The institute's Digital Accounting and Assurance Board is looking into the matter.

In a notice regarding an upcoming webinar on 'Crypto- currencies & Block chain - Will they disrupt Accounting?', the institute said crypto-currencies and block chain technology are game changers set to transform accounting and auditing world.

The webinar, to be held later this week, is to explore and examine the potential impact of emerging technologies of crypto-currencies and block chain on accounting, as per the notice.

Virtual currencies are stored in digital or electronic format, making them vulnerable to hacking, loss of password and malware attack, which may also result in permanent loss of money.