Bitcoin

Dubai Will Issue First Ever State Cryptocurrency

"Dubai has officially launched its own cryptocurrency called emCash, according to announcements by local news media outlets. The cryptocurrency would be used for payment of governmental and nongovernmental services. According to Ali Ibrahim, Deputy Director General of Dubai Economy, the token will be considered legal tender 'for various government and non-government services, from their daily coffee and children’s school fee to utility charges and money transfers.'"

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IMF Head Foresees the End of Banking, Triumph of Cryptocurrency

"In a remarkably frank talk at a Bank of England conference, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund has speculated that Bitcoin and cryptocurrency have as much of a future as the Internet itself. It could displace central banks, conventional banking, and challenge the monopoly of national monies. Christine Lagarde–a Paris native who has held her position at the IMF since 2011–says the only substantial problems with existing cryptocurrency are fixable over time."

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Bitcoin Icon Roger Ver Is Starting His Own Country With No Government

"Roger and the rest of the Free Society team are negotiating with different, undisclosed national governments. The Free Society’s goal is to reach an agreement with a national government that will grant them sovereignty over a piece of the existing government’s land, or a nearby territory. Free Society will operate with a Voluntarist — or Anarcho Capitalist — structure, where disputes come to resolutions through private arbitration, and services like law enforcement and protection emerge from the free market."

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Investment firm VanEck calls bitcoin a ‘fad,’ then files for bitcoin ETF

"Money management firm VanEck is both skeptical of bitcoin and planning to sell a related investment product, illustrating a rising perception that the surge of interest in the digital currency creates a high-risk opportunity that may be too big to miss."

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IRS Now Has a Tool to Spy On Bitcoin Users

"The Internal Revenue Service has purchased specialist software to track those using bitcoin, according to a contract obtained by The Daily Beast. The document highlights how law enforcement isn’t only concerned with criminals accumulating bitcoin from selling drugs or hacking targets, but also those who use the currency to hide wealth or avoid paying taxes. The IRS has claimed that only 802 people declared bitcoin losses or profits in 2015; clearly fewer than the actual number of people trading the cryptocurrency—especially as more investors dip into the world of cryptocurrencies, and the value of bitcoin punches past the $4,000 mark."

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How a Dog Named Brutus Was Used to Steal $36,000

"The police took more than half of the state’s median yearly income from someone because a dog sat next to their car. If you think this is a horrific injustice, you should feel relieved to know the overwhelming majority of Americans agree with you. Civil asset forfeiture is the formal name for this form of state sanctioned theft." Continue reading →

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People Keep Getting Charged With a Crime for Selling Bitcoin

"It's not illegal to sell bitcoins per se, but at least four people across the US this year have been charged or pleaded guilty to the crime of exchanging the cryptocurrency for fiat as a business without a license—'business' being the keyword." Continue reading →

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US to criminalize undeclared cash, bitcoin, gift cards, prepaid phones

"Have too much cash? You’d better tell the government. If not, they’re authorizing themselves in this bill to seize not just the money you didn’t report, but ALL of your assets and bank accounts. They even go so far as to specifically name 'safety deposit boxes' among the various assets that they can seize if you don’t fill out the form." Continue reading →

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“Due To Popular Demand” Goldman Starts Covering Bitcoin

"It's official: not only has bitcoin officially made its way to Wall Street, but confirming rumors that emerged over the weekend, 'hedge' funds - starved of volatility in virtually all other asset classes - are now not only actively trading the volatile digital currency, but as clients of the vampire squid, have petitioned Goldman's chief technician, Sheba Jafari to start covering it." Continue reading →

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