MUMBAI: Riding on the heightened interest around the digital cryptocurrency Bitcoin, Dabur scion Gaurav Burman has invested in itBit, a Singapore-based Bitcoin exchange, and plans to bring the platform to India over a period of time. Burman has bought in his personal capacity a minority stake in the exchange, which is building a global platform for trading in Bitcoins with US dollars, Singapore dollars and the euro with technology support from Nasdaq.The startup has raised $3.25 million in its latest funding round, and $5.5 million in total, led by the likes of Canaan Partners and RRE Ventures with participation from Liberty City Ventures . Silicon Valley investors have been pumping in big money, despite regulatory issues, into many virtual currency startups. The price of Bitcoin, which is not yet backed by any central bank, soared above $1,000 for the first time in November this year."A credible Bitcoin exchange platform that allows conversions into other major currencies in a secure and transparent manner will encourage wider usage of the currency. The investment is also an opportunity to study the business potential in a more mature financial market like Singapore, and we will consider the possibility of bringing the platform to India in the future," Burman told TOI.In India, players such as Buysellbitco.in let people trade in the digital currency. Bitcoin, created by anonymous programmers in 2009, is an open source product where the digital coins can be mined by techies by auto-solving complex mathematical algorithms or bought through exchanges. In India, mining of Bitcoins is popular in tech cities like Bangalore or Hyderabad.Online retailers and merchants have started using the virtual currency globally to accept payments against their services and sale of goods. However, none of the big e-tailers like Amazon have started accepting Bitcoins.Among a dozen venture capital (VC) investments in the digital currency space, BTC China - the world's largest exchange for the digital currency Bitcoin - recently raised funds from Lightspeed China Partners and US-based Lightspeed Venture Partners, showing the growing risk appetite of marquee investors around the currency."There is still a lot of risk attached to the digital currency due to regulatory issues. But if it becomes successful, it is a far more efficient global currency," said Alok Mittal, MD, Canaan Partners, a Silicon Valley-headquartered early-stage VC fund which has invested in itBit.Based out of London, Burman runs Elephant Capital, a private equity firm, along with his brother Mohit Burman . He recently announced a partnership with UK-based Healthcare At Home, an in-home healthcare services provider. The joint venture company - HealthCare At Home India - plans to work with corporate hospitals and doctors to offer critical healthcare services to patients in their own homes.