Bitcoin

Attempts To Eliminate Cash Are More Than A Privacy Disaster

"Politicians are suggesting that cash should be gradually replaced by credit card transactions and direct bank transactions, making every single movement of money trackable, seizable, and reversable. This is not just a privacy disaster, it’s also a resilience disaster. I had the privilege of having a long conversation with the Chief Security Officer of one of the larger European banks, and he told me the outcome was a given – there will always be some kind of cash. Whether it’s issued by a central bank is completely beside the point; if central-bank cash isn’t readily available, people will create a way to trade between them without involving a third party." Continue reading →

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Bank Calls Customer Over Detected Bitcoin Transactions

"Sean Percival today wrote about how he received a phone call from his bank, because 'they detected Bitcoin related transactions,' and they asked him if it was for personal use or business. And, no, it wasn't because of some concern about fraud. Percival clarified that it was just about Bitcoin, and said they wanted to know about 'a spike in activity' with merchants like Coinbase. He later confirmed that it was not even from the fraud department. Percival does not name the bank, other than to say that it's 'one of the biggies.' It will be interesting to see if this becomes a regular thing, and whether or not it'll become yet another path for government officials to try to track Bitcoin usage." Continue reading →

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Swedish bank freezes customer’s account after she sells 5 bitcoins

"Swedbank recently froze a customer’s account after it found out about her selling five bitcoins on a digital currency marketplace. Bröms Hopkins went on to say she was particularly frustrated that the bank didn’t try to contact her before freezing her account. 'Then a guy from the bank called me. He didn’t say it in so many words, but in between the lines he advised me against doing business in bitcoins because of its anonymity. After his call I felt a bit like a criminal,' she said. The bank reopened Bröms Hopkins’ account 15 days after they imposed the freeze." Continue reading →

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Mastercard Hates Bitcoins

"The new boss in charge of giving out a MasterCard licenses has no intention of allowing the brand or any bank that does private label cards to use Bitcoins. In fact, he nearly bragged to me about killing the BitInstant deal with a U.S. bank for the first planned $BTC card this year. Stephen Ruch, the heavyset MasterCard executive, is just a year into his job with the company, and while he monitors the Bitcoin space he told me he is still under the impression it’s one big Ponzi scheme. [..] His biggest fear was it would 'hurt the MasterCard' brand." Continue reading →

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State, provincial regulators raise red flags on virtual currency

"Consumers may be headed for trouble when they turn over bank and brokerage pass codes to investment advisers or get pulled into investment scams involving digital currencies, state securities regulators said. The North American Securities Administrators Association said digital currencies, such as Bitcoin, offer consumers another way of paying for goods and services, but they also provide a 'fertile ground for scam artists to capitalize on ... (their) increasing popularity and acceptance.' The association's members include state and provincial regulators in the United States, Canada and Mexico." Continue reading →

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‘Professor of Entrepreneurship’ at MIT Predicts a Bitcoin Backlash

"Simon Johnson, a professor of entrepreneurship at MIT’s Sloan School of Management, expects Bitcoin to face political pressure and aggressive lobbying from big banks because of its disruptive nature. Johnson says that Bitcoin’s success will draw increased attention from governments and regulators, who are used to having tight control over currencies. He believes they will be egged on by established financial institutions, which will likely seek to quash the currency. Bitcoin enables very rapid, cheap transfers and payments that could compete with existing fee-based ways of moving money around. 'Any bankers watching this should be very afraid,' said Johnson." Continue reading →

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Vault of Satoshi expands Canadian bitcoin exchange market

"A new Canadian exchange launched this week, offering cheaper rates than the incumbent, and touting an advanced API. [..] The firm sent in two requests to FINTRAC, the financial services regulator in Canada, asking for a money services business (MSB) license, but the regulator’s current position is that no such license is currently needed for bitcoin. The company was refused, says Curry. However, this puts exchanges in a precarious position, because while the regulator may not have concerns, some banks do. Royal Bank of Canada closed Virtex’s account early this year because it didn’t have a license, and Curry had the same problem." Continue reading →

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Surging Bitcoin Downloads in India

"Fears that the Federal Reserve will scale back its easy-money policies sent India’s rupee tumbling to record lows against the U.S. dollar this summer. And more recently, Moody’s warned that when the Fed does actually begin tapering its $85 billion in monthly bond purchases, countries with large current-account balances, like India and Brazil, will see even greater capital outflows. The outflows, in turn, will put their currencies and debt ratings further under pressure. In 2013 so far, India’s current-account deficit has grown to a record 4.9% of GDP. That loss of confidence in the rupee has translated into an opportunity for bitcoin." Continue reading →

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Dwolla shuts doors to bitcoin companies and virtual currency exchanges

"Dwolla has announced it can no longer work with virtual currency exchanges and other bitcoin-related services. The online payment system provider emailed its customers who operate companies related to bitcoin and other virtual currencies to inform them it is withdrawing its services as of 28th October at 16:00 CT. This move comes shortly after Capital One closed the bank account of a company after it started selling purely commemorative silver and copper bitcoin coins. According to Mulligan Mint’s CEO Rob Gray, the bank hadn’t bothered to do their research properly, as merchant services said the account was cancelled because the company was selling bitcoin." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDwolla shuts doors to bitcoin companies and virtual currency exchanges