Now, Nations Mull the Ways to Regulate Bitcoin

Authorities around the world are grappling with how to regulate virtual currency in the wake of the implosion of Mt. Gox, a prominent trading platform for Bitcoin.

In Tokyo, where Mt. Gox is based, Japan’s top government spokesman, Yoshihide Suga, said that agencies including the Financial Services Agency, the Finance Ministry and the police were collecting information on the Bitcoin trade in Japan, with an eye toward regulatory action. Japan’s new interest in Bitcoin came as authorities elsewhere were taking steps. In the weeks before the collapse of Mt. Gox, federal prosecutors in Manhattan sent a grand jury subpoena to the company. New York State’s top financial regulator, Benjamin M. Lawsky, has also signaled an interest in regulating the virtual currency. And the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is examining its potential authority over Bitcoin exchanges that have a United States presence, a person briefed on the matter said, as is the FBI in New York.