Yearly Archives: 2013

When Penalties are Preferable

"Nearly five in eight Americans polled by ABC News and The Washington Post say they 'lack the information needed to understand the changes that will take effect as the Affordable Care Act is implemented.' No surprise with a bill that stretched to 906 pages — plus 20,000 more of associated regulations. Besides, there’s nothing you can actually do in reaction to these stories. You’re a helpless spectator. Which is why we find the YouTube video much more intriguing… 'What we’re trying to communicate is, ‘No, you’re actually not required to buy health insurance,’' says Evan Feinberg. 'You might have to pay a fine, but that’s going to be cheaper for you and better for you.'" Continue reading →

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Pricing Glitch Afflicts Rollout of Online Health Exchanges

"Less than two weeks before the launch of insurance marketplaces created by the federal health overhaul, the government's software can't reliably determine how much people need to pay for coverage, according to insurance executives and people familiar with the program. Government officials and insurers were scrambling to iron out the pricing quirks quickly to avoid alienating the initial wave of consumers. A failure by consumers to sign up online in the hotly anticipated early days of the 'exchanges' is worrisome to insurers, which are counting on enrollees for growth, and to the Obama administration, which made the exchanges a centerpiece of its sweeping health-care legislation." Continue reading →

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Companies Tell Employees to Find Their Own Health Insurance Policies

"Walgreen’s is the latest firm to drop an in-house health insurance plan. It will pay workers a flat rate. Workers will then have to find a decent plan. Workers will soon find how slim the pickings are. This may make insurance companies more competitive. But there is a huge problem. Large companies got low rates because everyone was insured. The law of large numbers took over. High-risk employees were offset by all the low-risk employees. Now each person will be considered as a separate applicant. High-risk people will be identifiable. Obamacare says that they must get coverage. But will they? We don’t know yet. The health care insurance exchanges are not ready for prime time yet." Continue reading →

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The Sharing Economy Fights Back Against Regulators

"What started with a few enterprising individuals willing to let complete strangers sleep in their homes and use their possessions has now developed into a formidable economic force that threatens to upend several different industries. Along the way, it has posed some major legal challenges. The companies that are pushing it forward have continually undermined local ordinances, consumer safeguards, and protectionist regulations alike. As a result, governments around the country are trying to rein them in. That’s where Silicon Valley’s newest advocacy group comes in. Peers is a self-described 'grassroots organization' that launched to 'mainstream, protect, and grow the sharing economy.'" Continue reading →

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Atlantis: Online Drug Black Market Shuts Its Doors

"One of the sites that was more or less a copy of The Silk Road and the second largest online black market, The Atlantis Market, was forced to shut their doors for good due to 'security' reasons. Atlantis offered black market, anonymous items, in exchange for Bitcoin and Litecoin. Users will have one week to withdraw any of their funds before the market shuts down permanently. Below is a statement from the Atlantis team." Continue reading →

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BitPagos Uses Merchant Processing To Bring Bitcoin To Argentina

"Argentina’s currency troubles have been well documented for years. With inflation between 10 and 11% per year for most of the past decade, Argentinians have actively looked to subvert the country’s strict capital controls and obtain alternative stores of value. Historically, that has meant underground dealing in USD and EUR, but more recently has led to interest in the largely-unregulated world of bitcoin. BitPagos, a Latin American payment processing company in the latest class of the Boost.vc Accelerator, is capitalizing on that interest by adding bitcoin to their processing options." Continue reading →

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Around the World with Bitcoin

"We are thrilled to announce a trip around the world on bitcoin as part of our documentary film! Trip dates: October 12th - November 3rd Week #1: We will drive across the United States from our home Provo, Utah to New York City with multiple cities in between. Week #2: We will fly to Europe and specifically visit the glorious cities of Stockholm, Sweden and Berlin, Germany. Week #3: We will fly from Berlin to Singapore and spend a week in Asia. November 3rd: We will arrive back in Salt Lake City having circled the globe and paying for the trip with the world's first decentralized, digital currency, bitcoin!" Continue reading →

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Big Banks Start Campaign to Destroy Credit Unions

"As of March of this year, credit union membership has increased to more than 95 million members and they hold 6 percent of the financial assets of United States to the tune of $1 trillion dollars. Now the major banks want to destroy them. This month the American Bankers Association started a huge lobbying effort to end the tax break credit unions receive as non-profit organizations – a tax break that allows them to run as a non-profit and offer their members services at a much lower rate. There is a big budget battle looming and the estimated $2 billion in annual revenue that is estimated from eliminating the tax exemption has already been floated." Continue reading →

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Complying With U.S. Tax Evasion Law Is Vexing Foreign Banks

"Financial institutions, trade groups, scholars and members of Congress have raised an array of concerns, starting with the cost of creating the complex computer systems needed to track Americans’ accounts. In addition, tax havens like China, Panama and Russia have yet to sign on. And American banks are unhappy about a Treasury Department pledge to foreign banks, not part of the original law, to require American financial institutions to share data with other countries about foreign investors who have accounts in the United States." Continue reading →

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Beef Prices Set New Record Highs

"Retail beef prices rose nearly 4¢ in August to reach $5.394/lb, a record high, reports Beef Magazine. This should be no problem, though, if you switch to lower priced goods as beef climbs, as government theorizes consumers do as part of its chained-inflation index. For example, peanut butter prices are down 5.7% over the last 12 months, according to the BLS. So if you switch from steak to peanut butter sandwiches, you won't notice any increase in the cost of eating." Continue reading →

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