An investigation by Sputnik had earlier revealed that brokers were luring investors into pumping in their illegal cash into India’s real estate using Bitcoins.
“The income tax officials are gathering evidence to establish the identity of investors and traders, the transactions undertaken by them, the identity of counterparties, and the related bank accounts used, among other things,” an income tax official told the PTI.
Industry body Assocham has reported that Bitcoin is attracting an average of 3,500 new users/entrants per day in India alone. It also said that Bitcoin and other virtual currencies are gulping down a major proportion of surplus savings in the economy, threatening to derail the financial structure.
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Meanwhile, the income tax department is also mulling imposing a tax on the income generated from virtual currencies like Bitcoin, sources told Sputnik. Current provisions in India’s income tax law allow the government to impose a tax on such undeclared income by counting them as assets.
