New Money Laundering Guidelines Are A Positive Sign For Bitcoin. The War On Bitcoin—and Anonymity. In a sign of the times, FinCEN, the US Treasury Department agency in charge of combatting money laundering, issued guidance on Monday on the regulatory status of Bitcoin users and exchanges. Although some, like my friend and Cato adjunct scholar Tim Lee, believe that the guidance is basically good news because it means the government accepts the existence of Bitcoin, I am not so sure.
The guidance brings into sharper focus the nature of the conflict that is likely to ensue between governments and those who wish to exercise anonymity in online commerce. FinCEN, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, is one of the least scrutinized financial agencies in the US government. If you’ve ever transacted an amount over $10,000—say, you’ve bought a car or a house—FinCEN has a file on you.
The agency requires banks and other financial institutions to file a Currency Transaction Report for every deposit, withdrawal, exchange, payment, or transfer of that amount or more. BLOGDIAL » Blog Archive » The European Central Bank report on Bitcoin: you can smell their fear. The European Central Bank is one of the most destructive entities ever unleashed upon the peoples of Europe. Its Keynesian fiat currency is backed by nothing, is defrauding millions, is by design stealing value from the people who are forced to use it under threat of violence, and is doomed to fail and collapse like all other fiat currencies before it.
In the history of the world, there has not been a single fiat currency that has not collapsed, and the Euro will be no different. The average lifespan of fiat currencies has been 16 years, and the only exceptions to this are the currencies that have extra momentum for political reasons. The so called ‘bailouts’ in the Eurozone crisis are nothing more than the theft of value from millions of people to prop up mathematically unsustainable socialist economies. Greece defaulting and the other bankrupt states that are sure to follow, are just the beginning of this process. And now, on to the report. This is not correct. This is an error. PROTECT IP Act Breaks The Internet. Oh yeah, its going to impact BitCoin!!! in a big way!!!
In Germany, You Can Now Make Private Transactions In Bitcoins. The federal government of Germany, one of the most important nations in the financial world, has recognized Bitcoins officially. The financial regulator in the country has added the currency to the national banking code after deciding Bitcoins actually do act as "units of value. " The digital currency is now recognized as "private money" and thus can be trusted to a degree by bodies like banks. Coindesk.com quotes Stefan Greiner, a German lawyer, as saying the move makes Germany "the first country in the world which has a clear cut set of rules applicable to Bitcoins. " The recognition is important, Greiner thinks, because it lends an official blessing to the most famous crypto-currency, which may allow German banks and Bitcoin exchanges to interact on a more official level.
It does require that German Bitcoin companies must comply with local financial regulations, which may seem onerous, but the regulations are designed to protect consumers and other trading partners. Senate Wading Through Bitcoin's Benefits, Dark Side (11/18/2013) Www.wired.com/images_blogs/threatlevel/2012/05/Bitcoin-FBI.pdf. Bitcoin lobbyists meet US authorities amid growing scrutiny of digital currency | Technology. Representatives of Bitcoin's largest lobby group met federal law enforcement and financial agencies on Monday as the US authorities increased their scrutiny of the controversial digital currency. Patrick Murck, general counsel for the Bitcoin Foundation, confirmed the group was meeting the Federal Reserve, FBI, Treasury Department, tax officials and members of the secret service among others.
Unlike traditional currencies, Bitcoin is not backed by a central government, but instead created by a computer program. It can be traded or used to buy goods and services. Authorities have expressed concerns about potential money laundering abuses and its use in funding illegal activities including drug purchases. "Bitcoin and distributed finance is here to stay and our preferred path forward is a co-operative one, where we all can help ease each other's transition into an inclusive and distributed global financial system. " The meeting comes amid signs of a crackdown on Bitcoin. Bitcoin: FBI Admits To Engaging In Infiltration, Disruption and Dismantling of Competing Currencies. In a March 18, 2011 press release regarding the Liberty Dollar case, the FBI admitted to waging a secret war against any private currency system that competes against the US Dollar. In the press release, the FBI equates the use of sound money to an act of domestic terrorism.
The FBI states that it uses methods of infiltration and disruption against private citizens engaged in the use of voluntary currencies. The FBI writes: “Attempts to undermine the legitimate currency of this country [ie. unconstitutional Federal Reserve notes] are simply a unique form of domestic terrorism,” U.S. Attorney Tompkins said in announcing the verdict. “While these forms of anti-government activities do not involve violence [ie. they are voluntary systems with no victim], they are every bit as insidious and represent a clear and present danger to the economic stability of this country [ie. their widespread adoption may collapse the corrupt banking system],” she added. Hacker News | Is Bitcoin the most dangerous open source project ever? Bitcoin "can be really dangerous to social news ecosystem" So you agree with the article, but you don't want people to talk too much about it on HN?
I think it is a very weird position to hold. Imagine there was a very dangerous disease, should it be discussed openly in physician congresses? Yes? Why is Bitcoin so dangerous: - Could break the current economy. Ok, and so? - Bitcoin could ease the work for wrong-doers (drug traffic, etc.) This argument is very weak.
. - Tax Tax is the biggest issue, but let's not be in fear: Governments are very imaginative when it comes to getting money from their administrates. Every great innovation have been seen as extremely dangerous by the people in place. BLOGDIAL » Blog Archive » Thoughts On The Bitcoin Debacle. By Brandon Smith I was in the midst of the Save America Convention in Tampa, Florida when I heard, first, that Libya was under bombardment by the UN (led by U.S. forces), and, that Satoshi Nakamura of Bitcoin had been convicted of “counterfeiting”.
It was a stressful day, to say the least. For those not familiar with the Bitcoin incident, In November of 2017, federal officials raided the group’s headquarters nestled in a strip mall and seized all documents and the Bitcoin that backed up the paper certificates and digital currency being distributed through the Bitcoin Services website. The Justice Department asserted that Nakamura was placing Bitcoin, along with precious metals currency, into circulation with the purpose of mixing them “into the current money of the United States.” However, it wasn’t the conviction itself that struck me, so much as the language of the prosecutor, U.S. Attorney Anne Tompkins, in her post trial statement. Let me reprint my favorite parts for you here: Wow. L019: Bitcoin P2P Currency: The Most Dangerous Project We've Ever Seen - Launch - Solid discussions of this piece on BoingBoing.net, Hacker News, Slashdot and Reddit. Rob Tercek has a follow up to this piece here. by Jason Calacanis and the LAUNCH team A month ago I heard folks talking online about a virtual currency called bitcoin that is untraceable and un-hackable.
Folks were using it to buy and sell drugs online, support content they liked and worst of all -- gasp! Bitcoin is a P2P currency that could topple governments, destabilize economies and create uncontrollable global bazaars for contraband. I sent the 30 or so producers of my show This Week in Startups out to research the top players, and we did a show on Bitcoin on May 10. After month of research and discovery, we’ve learned the following: 1. What Are Bitcoins? 1. Each owner transfers the coin to the next by digitally signing a hash of the previous transaction and the public key of the next owner and adding these to the end of the coin.
The benefits of a currency like this: Where Do Bitcoins Come From?