New York State Superintendent of Financial Services Benjamin M. Lawsky announced that he would schedule a public hearing to tackle the world of digital currencies. More specifically, the event would focus on the feasibility of issuing a "BitLicense" for firms that make transactions in bitcoins and other virtual currencies. The move would make the market for virtual currencies similar to those of other forms of money, a New York Times Dealbook report said.

No date has been set for the hearing but if it proceeds, it will be a vital step in bringing digital money like bitcoins to the financial mainstream. In a similar vein, the Federal Election Commission already held a hearing this week to discuss if it should make campaign donations given in virtual money legal.

According to the Dealbook report, bitcoin financial insiders and authorities have looked at bitcoins with disdain, calling a speculative mania. Anonymous programmers created bitcoins four years ago. The digital currency's online network continues to endure despite the derision of authorities and the controversy that hounds it. No centralized authority regulates or controls the distribution of bitcoins.

In recent weeks, the price of bitcoins has risen to record highs. A single bitcoin is now equivalent to USD 425, based on the Mt. Gox platform which trades bitcoins for currencies like the US dollar. Regulators in the US have been trying to find ways to prevent the digital currency from being used for money laundering and other criminal acts. It was only last month when federal authorities closed down Silk Road and arrested its operator. Silk Road was an online marketplace that used bitcoins to buy and sell drugs, launder money and hire hitmen for murder.

In a letter that announced the planned hearing, Lawsky said, "The cloak of anonymity provided by virtual currencies has helped support dangerous criminal activity, such as drug smuggling, money laundering, gunrunning and child pornography."