Benjamin Lawsky, superintendent of New York’s Department of Financial Services, gave details of his agency’s regulatory plan for Bitcoin transactions in the state. Speaking at the Future Tense conference in Washington, DC, Lawsky outlined the creation of a “BitLicense” for businesses using cryptocurrencies, making New York the first U.S. state to regulate the currency. “Our…
In a report released yesterday, J.P. Morgan’s head of foreign exchange strategy, John Normand, expressed a deeply critical view of Bitcoin and other digital currencies. The eight-page report examined the “risks and opportunities” of investment in cryptocurrencies, citing many significant concerns for large-scale bank investment. In particular, Normand believes that Bitcoin is “vastly inferior to…
Following an already rough week of falling prices, Forbes reports that Bitcoin suffered another blow yesterday after the detection of a “massive and concerted” distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack on the block chain and related software. The attack focuses on a vulnerability known as “transaction malleability,” which allows records of transactions to be changed,…
As a two-day forum on the cyber-currencies wrapped up in New York on Wednesday, the regulatory future of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies is becoming clearer, though still undecided. Yesterday’s post looked at the hearings from the perspective of regulators and government officials, but also represented at the hearings were businesses, entrepreneurs, and investors who…
In a municipal building not far from Wall Street, financial regulators, law enforcement, and industry entrepreneurs met this week to discuss the future of virtual currencies, with specific focus on the increased acceptance of Bitcoin. The hearing, which took place on Tuesday and Wednesday, was part of a fact-finding investigation that began last August, and…
In the latest development connected to the Silk Road case, U.S. officials have arrested the CEO of Bitcoin exchange, BitInstant. Charlie Shrem, co-founder and chief executive of BitInstant, was taken into custody in New York on Sunday and charged with money laundering, operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, and failing to report suspicious activity. Robert…
As the World Economic Forum (WEF) gathers in Davos, Switzerland this week, Bitcoin appears to be merely a blip on the radar for the international political and financial elite. Even so, comments from leaders in these fields have been less than enthusiastic Perhaps the most attention garnering sentiments have come from Robert Shiller, Nobel laureate…
The flashy lights and star-studded shows of the Las Vegas strip are about to be joined by the rising celebrity of currency, Bitcoin. As of next week, two of Sin City’s casinos, The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel and Golden Gate Hotel & Casino, the city’s oldest, will be accepting Bitcoin in five of their…
Earlier this week, Bitcoinx reviewed some of the decisions shaping Bitcoin regulation around the world. While there has been no movement regarding classification of the crypto-currency on the part of the IRS, their silence means more to Bitcoin users than just frustration. Though there are a growing number of businesses and high-profile websites accepting the…
Just as Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs authorities in the UK are updating their policy on Bitcoin, eBay and PayPal are looking to re-evaluate their own approach to virtual currencies. Last week, PayPal President David Marcus tweeted “To clarify: we have no policies against using PayPal to sell Bitcoin mining rigs. We don’t support any…