Bitcoin

Regulation Opens Door to FinTech Startup Opportunities

"Complying with existing regulations and coping with future regulatory changes represent the biggest opportunity for startups to break into the potentially lucrative world of FinTech (Financial Technology), according to two seasoned FinTech players who spoke at The Wall Street Journal Tech Cafe in London. 'The easiest way to start a business to work within the finance sector is to look for a regulation that is coming down the pipe and develop a solution for that thing,' said Kirk Wylie, co-founder of OpenGamma, an open-source analytics and risk management platform for the financial services industry. 'Anywhere you see new regulation is always a way for startups to make money.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRegulation Opens Door to FinTech Startup Opportunities

Jeffrey Tucker: Fun and Fascinating Bitcoin

"The emerging cryptographic monetary standard entirely bypasses the age of fiat money and the age of central banking. It takes money out of the realm of public policy and central planning and places it in the hands of the people actually using it. Of all the features of Bitcoin, this one is perhaps the most beautiful. It has emerged from within the social order and was not imposed from above. How long will it take before the full implications reveal themselves? It took email some 20 years to go from obscure to common. Digital phone technology needed about the same swath of time. Bitcoin, however, could be different. Information travels farther and faster than ever before." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJeffrey Tucker: Fun and Fascinating Bitcoin

Once again the Winklevoss twins get beaten to launching their big idea

"Mark Zuckerberg beat the twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss to the punch in launching Facebook. Now someone else seems to be stealing a march on their plan to launch an investment scheme for bitcoin. The Winklevii’s scheme, unlike SecondMarket’s, is for a public ETF traded on a major exchange open to retail investors. But the SEC may not approve it any time soon because it has yet to work out oodles of legal questions about the cryptocurrency. At a conference last week, the brothers were vague, telling attendees that regulators could set parameters on bitcoin 'over the next 6 to 12 months.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOnce again the Winklevoss twins get beaten to launching their big idea

Fund to Let Investors Bet on Price of Bitcoins

"The upstart stock exchange SecondMarket has made a name for itself allowing investors to buy shares of hot private companies like Twitter. Now that those companies are going public, SecondMarket is turning its attention to the next new thing — bitcoin. On Thursday, SecondMarket is expected to begin raising money for an investment fund — the first of its kind in the United States — that will hold only bitcoins, giving wealthy investors exposure to the trendy but controversial virtual currency. The fund, the Bitcoin Investment Trust, aims to provide a reliable and easy way to bet on the future price of bitcoin, a currency generally traded on unregulated, online exchanges based overseas." Continue reading →

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The world’s first Bitcoin escort agency

"Would-be clients of upscale escorts in Birmingham, UK now have way to pay for escort services that's just as discreet as cash and more secure: Bitcoin has officially entered the realm of sex work. The world's oldest profession met the world's youngest currency as escort agency Passion VIP announced it now accepts payment for its adult companionship services in bitcoin. Located in the second most populous British city (after London), Passion VIP is hoping the introduction of bitcoin payments will open up a new market by giving clients an alternative payment method." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe world’s first Bitcoin escort agency

Ex-World Bank Counsel: Lawlessness when USD Loses Reserve Status

"Karen Hudes, a former 20 year employee of the World Bank, contends the U.S. credit rating is on very dubious ground. Hudes says, 'This is actually an underhanded move because they know the U.S. dollar is going to lose its status as an international currency.' What would that look like to the man on the street? Hudes predicts, 'Prices would change on a daily basis. They would double. The number of families that would be employed would be in the minority . . . there would be lawlessness.' Join Greg Hunter as he goes One-on-One with former World Bank lawyer Karen Hudes." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEx-World Bank Counsel: Lawlessness when USD Loses Reserve Status

Bitcoin Securities Exchange Shutters, Cites Regulatory Environment

"BTC Trading Corp (BTC-TC) announced that it will close all trading by October 7, two weeks from today. BTC-TC is one of the largest bitcoin securities exchanges, responsible for 101,000 BTC ($12M) in deposited securities and 2,900 BTC ($350K) in daily volume. The company’s notice cited 'recent changes in the virtual currency regulatory environment' as the reason for shuttering operations. Also closing is LTC-Global, a litecoin-denominated securities exchange also run by Ethan Burnside, the same operator as BTC-TC. All trading was temporarily halted and order books were cleared after the announcement was made at 5am EST." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin Securities Exchange Shutters, Cites Regulatory Environment

Forget premiums: A peer-to-peer network will cover you

"An online insurance firm called Peercover lets groups of people insure each other on their own terms and at a fraction of the cost. Insurance is the latest financial service to get a shake-up from peer-to-peer (P2P) dynamics. Already, individuals can lend money for a return with interest. Similarly, people wanting to exchange currency can avoid banks and instead use P2P services to find other people looking to make the opposite trade. 'The changes in financial services that are happening now are happening more quickly and dramatically than anything we've seen over the last 100 years,' says Ron Suber of peer-to-peer loan company Prosper. 'Peercover is a great example.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingForget premiums: A peer-to-peer network will cover you

BitScan’s exclusive Q&A with Roger Ver

"If you look at bitcoin, it has all those same characteristics of gold in terms of it being easily recognizable, easily divisible and similarly, they both have a limited supply and can’t just be made out of thin air. Where bitcoin differs from gold is that it is easily transportable. You can send bitcoins anywhere on the planet instantly basically for free. It is incredibly expensive to ship gold around the world and if you do, you have to trust the shipping company or the delivery company, with bitcoin you don’t have to trust anybody at all. All you do, is send the bitcoins and they have been sent. So bitcoin has gold’s valuable characteristics as money but it is also transportable." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitScan’s exclusive Q&A with Roger Ver