Fear of virtual currencies

The April 6 notification barring financial institutions from dealing in virtual currencies can be termed RBI's most retrograde step

The internet is possibly the greatest enabler of the 21st century. It has shrunk the world around us. Strangely, the internet was also once feared as a product of technology. When the internet was new, criminals were the first ones to adopt it. Believe it or not, there were calls to ban the internet. Once people realised the benefits of the internet, they focused on rooting out the criminal activity and not at banning the internet.

It is for this reason that the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) recent move can be termed its most retrograde. 

The RBI in a notification issued