Bitcoin

Bitcoin Should Get Ready for an Attack

"The coming attacks will be publicized rapidly – with stories and releases prepared ahead of time – and will paint the worst possible picture. Afterwards it will be seen that the first loss estimates were wildly high, but that won't matter to the people who see the headlines on the evening news. Joe and Jane Obedient will believe the worst. This is all manipulation, obviously, since people are being ripped-off in government money, on gigantic scales: millions of thefts at once. But, such is the state of the West at this sad moment: The large abusers are sanctified and the innovators are demonized." Continue reading →

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Bitcoin Crash Spurs Race to Create New Exchanges

"The rush to build a more reliable exchange for the virtual currency bitcoin is under way after another price crash on Wednesday disgruntled customers who directed their anger against the alternative currency's major exchange. This follows a 20 percent crash last Thursday which Mt.Gox blamed on a type of hacking attack called a distributed denial-of-service attack (DDoS) -- which slows down the website -- delaying orders and panicking sellers. Another DDoS was again reported by the exchange on Thursday morning, coinciding with another price drop." Continue reading →

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NYT: Bubble or No, Virtual Bitcoins Show Real Worth

"So why the sudden run-up in value? Some point to the recent crisis over Cypriot banks, which made a currency beyond the control of governments more tempting. And as with a run-up in anything tradable there is also the hypnotic logic that says the price went up today, so that means it will go up tomorrow. Some observers and investors also make the case that bitcoins are in fact undervalued: The total value of the world’s economic activity is enormous. There are certain transactions that are ideal for bitcoins because the currency is relatively anonymous and does not need to be processed by a financial organization or a government." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNYT: Bubble or No, Virtual Bitcoins Show Real Worth

Government Fees, Parking Tickets May Soon Be Paid in Bitcoin

"While some call Bitcoin an 'existential threat to the state,' local governments could soon embrace the digital currency and payment system as a practical alternative to credit and debit cards. E-Gov Link, an Ohio company that helps municipalities accept payments online for parking tickets, permits, and the like, now allows its customers to take bitcoin.- Bitcoin transactions can be processed at a fraction of the cost of other payment methods because they avoid the interchange structure of the legacy card processors." Continue reading →

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AFP: Bitcoin price bubble soars to record as investors grow nervous

"A cottage industry of stores buying and reselling goods online for Bitcoins has emerged, and some high-profile transactions have helped push the currency into mainstream consciousness. One Canadian man reportedly hoped to sell his house for Bitcoins, and a US man claimed to have traded his 2007 Porsche for 300 Bitcoins. The Cyprus banking crisis – which saw the tiny nation agree a bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund, European Commission and European Central Bank that will shrink the banking sector and lead to losses on deposits of more than 100,000 euros – also coincided with a run-up in Bitcoin valuation." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAFP: Bitcoin price bubble soars to record as investors grow nervous

Cyprus – A wake-up call: Rethinking money

"In this documentary we have tried to capture the thoughts and feelings of ordinary Cypriots after their bank accounts got frozen in March of 2013. We've also asked them to think about alternative ways to see and use money. We'd like to thank them for their participation. We believe everyone should have the right to choose their own currency." Continue reading →

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Jeff Berwick on FOX Business: Varney and Co. talking Bitcoin ATM

"Jeff Berwick is on FOX Business: Varney and Co. discussing the value of Bitcoin and his recently announced BitcoinATM project set to launch in Cyprus very soon. Read more about BitcoinATM at www.BitcoinATM.com and read the original press release at The Dollar Vigilante: http://dollarvigilante.com/blog/2013/3/25/worlds-first-bitcoin-atm-is-announced-first-location-cyprus.html " Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJeff Berwick on FOX Business: Varney and Co. talking Bitcoin ATM

Jeffrey Tucker: Bitcoin’s Moment

"The Cyprus disaster sets in place an incredible precedent: Bank deposits will hereafter be treated as government property first and belong to the depositors only at the discretion of the masters of the money. It’s no wonder that Bitcoins are being brought from locales all over Europe, including Spain, Greece, Italy, and beyond. This also accounts for why mainstream news outlets are starting to write about Bitcoin as if it were the real thing, something serious, something that really matters on the world stage. Meanwhile, Bitcoin applications are flourishing all over the Web." Continue reading →

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As Feds Suggest ‘Guidance,’ Bitcoin Foundation Pushes Back

"The Bitcoin Foundation, which is devoted to standardizing and promoting the currency, didn’t like FinCEN’s guidance. As Patric Murck, the organization’s general counsel, wrote in a March 19 blog posting: 'Simply put, under the Administrative Procedures Act (APA), FinCEN can’t promulgate new rules without going through a notice and comment proceeding whereby the public may have their voices heard. If FinCEN would like to expand its statutory authority over ‘money transmitters’ to include brand new categories such as ‘administrators’ and ‘exchangers’ of digital currency it must do so through proper rulemaking proceedings and not by fiat.'" Continue reading →

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Analyst: All Of My Clients Think There’s A Bitcoin Bubble, Despite ‘Perfect Storm’

"Where is all of the momentum behind the Bitcoin trade coming from? 1. An increasingly tech-savvy base of savers all around the world don’t think it is any stranger to trust an open-source piece of software than it is to put your money in a commercial bank. 2. Lots of people around the world are uncomfortable with central bank policies, which seem to give money away to a global banking system which remains fundamentally broken. 3. Worries over heavy deposit taxes in various European countries (Spain, Greece, and even Italy), courtesy of the resolution to the Cypriot banking crisis 4. Some clarification of U.S. regulations, bringing Bitcoin long-needed legitimacy..." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAnalyst: All Of My Clients Think There’s A Bitcoin Bubble, Despite ‘Perfect Storm’