The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has revealed it is working with federal regulators in developing consumer protections for bitcoins and other alternative currencies.

The CFPB said it plans to increase its alternative currency oversight, which so far has been limited to informal discussions with the Federal Trade Commission, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

CFPB’s interest in bitcoins was disclosed in a letter to the U.S. Government Accountability Office mentioned in a GAO report on alternative currencies published Thursday.

The GAO, the investigative arm of Congress, said federal regulators have been more concerned about money laundering using virtual currencies than consumer protection issues. But thefts of bitcoins by hackers and a loss of 850,000 bitcoins from the bankruptcy of the Mt. Gox virtual currency exchanges have highlighted problems consumers face, the report said.

More collaboration between the CFPB and other federal regulators may be needed to place greater emphasis on the need for consumer protection to meet bitcoin risks, GAO said in its report.