A group of operators handling Bitcoin in India has formed an industry association to take up issues of common interest. This comes in the wake of the Reserve Bank of India sending out caution notice about virtual currencies such as Bitcoin. The operators, which are part of the association, called Bitcoin and Virtual Currency Association of India, include Zebpay, Unocoin, Coinsecure and Searchtrade. These entities are in the process of having the association registered. According to Saurabh Agarwal, co-founder of Zebpay, while the members have been planning to create an association for some time, they finally pushed things after the circular. There was an association earlier, called Bitcoin Alliance of India, but it is now defunct. The association will have some 20 members, including Bitcoin startups in the country. The founders said the main objective of the new association is to create an industry body to engage with regulators and to focus on making Bitcoin trading safe by ensuring members follow strong KYC measures and by creating awareness among users about ponzi schemes and other risks. At present Bitcoin is not regulated in India and RBI in its 1 February circular said it has not given any license/authorization to any entity/company to operate such schemes or deal with Bitcoin or any virtual currency. The central bank also warned of threats to Bitcoin users from cyber attacks and illegal activities.
