[2013] Bitcoin May Be the Global Economy's Last Safe Haven

[kailahopkins]

The new phase of currency is here and it's virtual. You have to trust first because this is all about risk. Unlike paper money, digital coins are unseen and can’t be manipulated by the Federal government.

 

[MULTIZ321]

Crazy Currency: The More I Report on Bitcoin, The Weirder It Gets - by Cyrus Farivar/ Finance/Media Innovation/ arstechnica.com

"Op-ed: Despite a year of reporting and Bitcoin's insane rise, I'm happy not to own any..."

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Cornering the Bitcoin market may be easier than cornering orange juice futures.
Paramount Pictures / Aurich Lawson


Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

The Giant Bitcoin Crash in the Wake of China Restrictions? It Never Happened. - by Jason del Rey/ Commerce/ AllThingsD.com

Bitcoin value recovers in wake of China Bitcoin restictions.

Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

Bitcoin ATM's Are Spreading Across the World - by Brian Patrick Eha/ Technology/ Entrepreneur.com

"Sometimes the future can sneak up on you. Like when you find out that a startup incorporated in the British Virgin Islands, whose employees live in New Hampshire and whose products are made in Portugal, is selling digital-currency ATMs to Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

These are only two of the countries that have purchased Bitcoin ATMs from manufacturer Lamassu, which announced Monday that it had sold 120 of the machines to customers all over the world..."

- Image Credit: Reuters


Richard

 

[x3 skier]

Bitcoin ATM's Are Spreading Across the World - by Brian Patrick Eha/ Technology/ Entrepreneur.com

"Sometimes the future can sneak up on you. Like when you find out that a startup incorporated in the British Virgin Islands, whose employees live in New Hampshire and whose products are made in Portugal, is selling digital-currency ATMs to Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

These are only two of the countries that have purchased Bitcoin ATMs from manufacturer Lamassu, which announced Monday that it had sold 120 of the machines to customers all over the world..."

- Image Credit: Reuters


Richard

Gee, a whole 120 ATM's in the whole world! Probably more penny crushing souvenir machines in Orlando.

Cheers

 

[MULTIZ321]

Why I Lost Faith in Bitcoin As A Money Transfer Protocol - by Romain Dillet/ TechCrunch.com

"As 2013 came to an end, many reflected on last year’s biggest tech news — and Bitcoin was a serious contender. But the main question remains: why are people interested in Bitcoin?..."

Read more to learn about Bitcoin's weakness as a money transfer protocol.

Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

How to Trade Bitcoin (And If You Should) - by Andrew Tarantola/ Gizmodo.com

"There's a digital gold rush sweeping the globe as investors try to cash in on Bitcoin, the notoriously volatile cryptocurrency. Getting involved yourself is easier—and riskier—than you think.

As with any exchange or speculative market, trading in Bitcoin is a risky venture that could cost you real money—and lots of it. So the most important advice is to proceed with caution. If you're game, though, here's what you need to know to get started..."


Richard

 

[Ken555]

BTC increased this week, and is trading today over $900.

 

[shoegal]

Wow

Interesting, I never heard of bit coin before! I will certainly look into this...

 

[kailahopkins]

As long as Bitcoin will likely hold or increase in value, the saga will continue.

 

[MULTIZ321]

Bitcoin Breaks Out, You Can Now Pay the IRS in Cryptocurrency - by Ben Kepes/ Contributor/ Forbes.com

...The idea of paying for ecommerce goods via crypto currency, however, isn’t really super novel – it’s an obvious use case. Online shopping, online alternative currency- it goes together like… peanut butter and jelly.

But what if someone told you that they enabled the payment of tax debt via bitcoin? Now that’s pretty unique.

The last bastion of hyper-cautious Government agencies meets the very bleeding edge of economics. Especially ironic given the fact that bitcoin is seen by many as primarily a vehicle for transacting in illegal or non-declared income generating activities.

The idea of paying tax via bitcoin is sure to have a few people chuckling and more than a few horrified.

According to SnapCard founder Ioannis Giannaros, SnapCard will extend the program to allow bitcoin-fueled payment universally..."

The bitcoin logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)


Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

Buckle Up: The FBI Now Has the Green Light to Sell Silk Road Bitcoins - by Michael Carney/ Pando.com

"When you know something bad is coming, it’s a bit easier to prepare yourself. But it makes that event’s arrival no less unpleasant. The bitcoin market is collectively going through this experience today, a day after the Manhattan US Attorney’s office announced that a judge had signed a forfeiture order for the first pile of bitcoins that the FBI seized from online black market Silk Road, or as the government calls it, “a global cyber business designed to broker criminal transactions.” That means the Bureau can now liquidate 29,655 bitcoins, which are worth $25.1 million at yesterday’s $847.67 average closing price..."

Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

Why Bitcoin Matters - by Marc Andreessen/ Another View/ DealBook/ The New York Times.com

Editor’s note: Marc Andreessen’s venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz, has invested just under $50 million in Bitcoin-related start-ups. The firm is actively searching for more Bitcoin-based investment opportunities. He does not personally own more than a de minimis amount of Bitcoin.



Richard

 

[x3 skier]

Doesn't anybody recognize that anything on the Internet can be hacked? A "currency" that relies on a computer algorithm for its creation seems to me to be very vulnerable to "counterfeiting" by people skilled enough to break into Targets POS system.

As soon as it is worth their while, they will do it and probably easier than printing fake $100 bills.

Cheers

 

[Ken555]

Doesn't anybody recognize that anything on the Internet can be hacked? A "currency" that relies on a computer algorithm for its creation seems to me to be very vulnerable to "counterfeiting" by people skilled enough to break into Targets POS system.



As soon as it is worth their while, they will do it and probably easier than printing fake $100 bills.



Cheers

Have you read about this, or are you guessing that "anything on the Internet can be hacked"? From what I've read and seen, the method used to track bitcoin (and the 100ish similar other coins) and the Target incident (and implied vulnerability within the monster known as credit cards) are quite different. In fact, that's part of the point of bitcoin.


Sent from my iPad

 

[BostonKingB]

You forgot the e in the original post

Bitcoin May Be the Global Economy's Least Safe Haven

 

[x3 skier]

Have you read about this, or are you guessing that "anything on the Internet can be hacked"? From what I've read and seen, the method used to track bitcoin (and the 100ish similar other coins) and the Target incident (and implied vulnerability within the monster known as credit cards) are quite different. In fact, that's part of the point of bitcoin.


Sent from my iPad

Given the relatively small amount of Bitcoin around compared to other ways to steal money on the Internet, I just feel that when it becomes profitable to steal Bitcoin, it will be done since it is computer based. Many have claimed their systems are secure and been proven glaringly wrong.

Cheers

 

[bogey21]

I have been loading up on 1 oz silver coins with the Canadian Maple Leaf being my coin of choice. I figure that if all Hell breaks loose and paper currency hits the skids, that 1 oz of .9999 silver should keep me in food.

George

 

[Ken555]

Given the relatively small amount of Bitcoin around compared to other ways to steal money on the Internet, I just feel that when it becomes profitable to steal Bitcoin, it will be done since it is computer based. Many have claimed their systems are secure and been proven glaringly wrong.

Cheers

Ok, I get it. You're cautiously pessimistic - and I agree it makes sense to be prudent. I think you'll find many things we put faith in are computer based these days. What I find interesting about bitcoin and other similar currencies is that anyone can see exactly how much anyone else has, but anonymously. If I gave you my "account" numbers, you'd be able to see what I have, etc. But since it requires multiple verifications by independent computers for each transaction, it appears quite difficult to hack. I'm not saying its impossible, but just difficult. It's a heck of a lot easier to steal a credit card number. That said, I'm not sure I would advise anyone keeping a lot of money in bitcoin right now, but using it as another means of currency will have its advantages.

I also would expect a continual negative reaction from traditional banking sources to bitcoin and others. After all, bitcoin permits easy and cheap transfer of money while traditional banks make profit from the same service. I had to wire money overseas today and it cost me $25 (normally $45) - which is absurd! We have let our banking system take advantage of us in more than one way, and bitcoin is a natural reaction to fill the void of low cost (anonymous) banking services.

FWIW, I put together a small computer "miner" a few months ago and have been earning ~$15-20/day after electrical expenses. It's been fun, too.


Sent from my iPad

 

[MULTIZ321]

TigerDirect Now Acceping Bitcoin, Claims to Be First Major Electronics Retailer and Largest Company to Do So - by Emil Protalinski/ TheNextWeb.com

"TigerDirect today announced it has started accepting Bitcoin as a method of payment on over 200,000 products via both its desktop and mobile websites. The company claimed it is the first major US electronics retailer and the largest company to date to accept the digital currency.

Overstock.com recently started accepting Bitcoin, and while it’s unclear how big TigerDirect is in comparison, its parent company Systemax is certainly larger. In 2012, Overstock.com saw revenues of $1.1 billion while Systemax generated $3.54 billion..."


Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

Bitcoin's Next Frontiers: ATM's, Congress - by Dan Zac, The Washington Post/ Syndicated in The News-Herald/news-herald.com

"The small monolith sits at the back wall of a downtown coffee shop. Canadians are a demure people, not known to shriek or hop, but they approach the Bitcoin ATM with the spooked wonder of those apes in “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Though drab and utilitarian, the machine projects an aura of the future, or maybe of suspicion, depending on one’s comfort with technology. The Bitcoin ATM, the first of its kind, takes cash or credit and spits out bitcoin.

Bitcoin is — well, it’s a thing you read about and don’t fully understand.

It’s referred to as a “cryptocurrency,” or a peer-to-peer electronic payment system whose transactions are encrypted and governed by many users on a public ledger. It’s not regulated or accepted by the government, and yet 0.00553 of a bitcoin will get you a mocha here at Waves Coffee House on Howe Street. So Bitcoin is definitely a thing, but its utility hinges on an agreed-upon fantasy, or at least collective blind faith — which you might also say about traditional banknotes, right? Yes? ..."

Adam Soltys, co-founder of a bit coin co-operative in Vancouver, swaps Canadian currency for bitcoins using the new bitcoin ATM installed at the Waves coffee shop in the city's downtown on October 29, 2013.


Richard

 

[x3 skier]

After Arrest, Bitcoin Activist Shrem Resigns from Bitcoin Foundation

There are crooks everywhere.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles...0111511974?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection

Cheers

 

[MULTIZ321]

A Guide to Bitcoin's Legality in Different Countries Around the World - by Adam Clark Estes/ Gizmodo.com

"Americans are spoiled—at least where Bitcoin's concerned, we are. While people are free to mine, spend, and speculate on Bitcoin freely here in the States, citizens of other countries aren't so lucky.

Kashmir Hill just published a very helpful guide to Bitcoin's legality around the world. It runs the gamut of no regulations whatsoever in South Korea to an intimidating maze of rules in China. And, believe it or not, Denmark hates the little cryptocurrency that could. We'll let it slide, though—they invented LEGO."

Bitcoin's Legality Around the World - by Kashmir Hill/ Forbes Staff. Forbes.com

Bitcoin around the world


Richard

 

[x3 skier]

Interesting

Things that happen with a computer based system.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304104504579374410182920576?KEYWORDS=Bitcoin

Cheers

 

[Ken555]

Things that happen with a computer based system.



http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304104504579374410182920576?KEYWORDS=Bitcoin



Cheers

This is like saying a bank had a computer problem. Keep it in perspective. It's not bitcoin itself that has this problem, from what I read, but rather one exchange (which has been plagued with issues for almost a year and is no surprise to anyone following bitcoin).


Sent from my iPad