Underscoring its already well-known stance on cryptocurrencies, the Indian government released a new statement from the Ministry of Finance on December 29th. The statement warns India\'s residents of the risks involved in trading virtual currencies, and compares them to Ponzi schemes. This was the third warning emanating from an Indian government body in 2017, and indicates an increasing level of anxiety amongst the country\'s top financial regulators. In February and December the Reserve Bank of India issued two similar warning statements to people in the country who have cryptocurrency holdings and engage in trading them.

The new statement shows the Indian government responding to a worldwide surge in the prices of digital currencies, possibly as a result of their December launch on Chicago\'s futures markets. The Ministry also emphasises that cryptocurrencies are not recognised in India as legal tender and that they have not issued any licences authorising a cryptocurrency exchange. The notice states that users who invest in digital currencies will therefore be responsible for all the potential legal, financial, operational and security risks. 

Much discussion is ongoing in India as to whether and how the country should regulate cryptocurrencies, and this latest warning suggests that some form of regulation will be the government\'s next step.