13th Million Bitcoin Mined

Hip-Hop Icon Nas: We’re Entering the Age of Bitcoin

 

Hip-hop heavyweight Nas made a dramatic career move when he traded the thrills of rap superstardom for life in Silicon Valley’s tech startup scene.

As founder of the venture capital firm Queensbridge Venture Partners, Nas, full name Nasir Jones, has invested in projects that include popular ride sharing startup Lyft, mobile laundry service Washio and e-commerce platform Fancy, forging connections with tenured VCs in the process.

Through new relationships with Andreessen Horowitz’s Ben Horowitz and Chris Dixon, the 40-year-old has also become interested in the burgeoning digital currency space.

Like Dixon and Horowitz, both vocal supporters of the digital currency movement, Jones is similarly bullish about bitcoin’s potential – having already invested in financial services provider Coinbase.

Speaking to CoinDesk in a new interview, Jones suggested that bitcoin could be one of history’s best investment opportunities:

“[Bitcoin] will evolve into an industry as big, if not bigger, than the Internet. My man Ben Horowitz really opened my eyes to that point. This isn’t of the Internet age, bitcoin is its own age.”

Despite his enthusiasm, Jones also acknowledged that many people still perceive bitcoin as unsafe. However, he suggested that such concerns may be overreaching, adding that time and talent will be enough to overcome them.

“Obviously challenges will arise from a security and privacy perspective, but the Internet was the same way 20 years ago,” he said.

Personal bitcoin use

Jones confirmed that he and his team have been buying bitcoin for more than a year, using wallets provided by Coinbase to store funds. While his firm hasn’t spent any of the accumulated bitcoins yet, he revealed it may do so soon:

“[We're] holding onto it for now, but [we're] looking forward to making transactions in the near future.”

In addition to his interest in bitcoin’s economics, Jones also harbours a passion for the digital currency’s underlying ideology.

“I was really inspired by the boundaries people were pushing,” Jones said. “[Bitcoin] seemed like something people bet against because the government doesn’t welcome with open arms what they don’t control. But it is such a big idea that it could never be controlled.”

Investment opportunities

On the new investment front, Jones indicated he is still observing the digital currency space – seeking to identify trends and potential opportunities.

He suggested, however, that he may invest in projects focused on bringing bitcoin to people with little or no access to banking services.

“[I] would love to see how it affects people who don’t use credit cards or don’t have bank accounts,” he said. “[Bitcoin] could be a big opportunity for those folks.”

Jones also discussed his relationship with the Coinbase team, remarking that he was personally struck by their collective talents:

“The Coinbase guys are great. [Co-founder] Fred [Ehrsam] loves hip hop. How could I not get involved?”

Musical career

Jones is also rumored to be working on his next album, the follow-up to 2012′s number one hit ‘Life is Good’. In his comments, he suggested the marketing campaign for this album could include bitcoin.

Earlier this year, 50 Cent became one of the first mainstream artists to embrace bitcoin, partnering with merchant processor BitPay for his latest album ‘Animal Ambition’, released in June.

Though noncommittal, Jones didn’t exclude the possibility that he could take a similar approach to future musical releases. He concluded:

“We are exploring this now: to be continued.”

 Source : http://www.coindesk.com

All Things Alt: Starcraft Goes Crypto, Urocoin’s Future and a Mining Pool Prohibition

Even as the calendar turns to August, there has been no shortage of exciting times in the altcoin world. While the news hasn’t been all good – several high-profile alt scams have rocked the community in recent weeks – there’s no denying that the community is still filled with enthusiasm.

To get just a taste of what’s been happening – and what’s to come – keep on reading!

Developer Bohan Huang on the future of uro

 

 

The urocoin project has attracted a fair amount of controversy, both regarding its developer and the alt’s long-term viability. Urocoin is a coin backed by the market value of urea, a type of fertilizer used commonly throughout the world.

In theory, the value of each urocoin is pegged to one metric ton of urea, which at market prices puts each coin at just over $300.'

These days, however, URO is trading at just above $2 despite once hitting a high of $18.

Speculation and criticisms aside, it appears that the uro initiative is proceeding full-steam ahead, with discussions taking place that will establish a payment network for uro to be used by urea sellers and traders.

All Things Alt caught up with uro developer Bohan Huang, who discussed the future of the coin and what he hopes to accomplish with the project. Notably, Huang is aiming to create a marketplace – with uro as its foundation – that enables commodity merchants and traders to profit.

Huang explained:

“We think this separation of ‘trading’ and ‘buying’ is a good thing going forward for markets like urea, because the purchasers are agricultural mainly as opposed to financial so they do not really want to deal with all the headaches of fluctuating prices, whereas traders and speculators love volatility for profits. So it’s a win-win.”

As for the future of URO-urea exchange, Huang said that the development team is working toward an agreement between urea producers and buyers to allow the usage of urocoin. Huang stated that, by consensus, parties within the system will agree to pay the set rate of 1 URO per 1 metric tonne of urea.

“In our case, it’s consensus to accept 12,500 uro as payment for a 12,500 metric tonne shipment of urea (smallest cargo ship volume),” he said. “So, as more customers use this payment option, demand and supply will slowly adjust the market exchange rate to the ‘correct’ level because the number of tokens is limited.”

The Uro Foundation, the trade organization overseeing efforts to integrate urocoin into the urea market, announced last month that the first-ever urea transaction involving 25,000 URO was conducted.

Given the volatility in the price of urocoin and lingering concerns among the alt community, it remains to be seen where this project will go in the months ahead.

Minerals community prepares for StarCraft II tournament

 

Previously on All Things Alt, we looked at several altcoins seeking to make inroads into the e-sports betting, a proposition that supporters of the concept see as a way for cryptocurrencies to gain broader adoption.

This weekend will see a critical event in this movement, as the minerals development team and a group of StarCraft II players are set to kick off the Immortals Minerals Invitational on 2nd August beginning at 10 am PDT.

Hosted by The Immortals, a globally ranked StarCraft II team, the event brings together six prominent players from the game’s international player set. These players will compete in a round robin while an open bracket with 128 slots. Registration is still open, according to the site.

Prizes are denominated in both US dollars and minerals, bringing the tournament in line with others that take place with thousand-dollar cash purses. The top prize in the event is worth 25,000 MIN, or roughly $250, with second and third place worth 10,000 MIN and 4,000 MIN, respectively.

As the website explains:

“This is an exciting Starcraft II event featuring six of the best players in the world and an open bracket to give 128 players a chance to play against their favorite pros. The tournament will be supported by a prize pool featuring a lucrative combination of both USD and Minerals cryptocurrency.”

The minerals betting platform, which has been undergoing an open beta for the past few weeks, will be available for MIN betting during the event.

Bitcoin Talk restricts mining pool posts

 

In an effort to cut down on pool-related spam, the moderator team for Bitcoin Talk forum has announced new restrictions on this type of posting.

As explained by forum moderator BadBear, the prohibition extends to all parts of the website, although much of the criticism behind the banned practice – spamming threads with pool advertisements – is focused on altcoin project postings.

The moderator said:

“Advertising mining pools is no longer allowed, including, but not limited to, altcoin announcement threads. Mining pool OPs should make one thread within the Mining section of Alt Currencies. Do not make a separate thread for each coin. Most OPs already link to pools available so advertising your pool is unnecessary and leads to too much spam.”

The community response was mixed, ranging from enthusiasm for the ban to confusion and concern that new altcoins – and the pools that service them will be at a disadvantage. Pool operators themselves decried the move, saying that those unfamiliar with navigating Bitcoin Talk will have a hard time finding information on which pools service certain altcoins.

It should be noted that thread posters are not restricted from listing mining pools as options for users. Instead, the prohibition – which began on 31st July – focuses on pool owners who stand accused of spamming messages in a variety of threads.

Strange alt of the week

The anonymous coin movement has produced a variety of alt projects, including well-established alts like darkcoin and XC and newcomers such as cloakcoin and keycoin.

Yet a relatively recent entry into this increasingly crowded space brings several unusual characteristics to the table, as well as some downright bizarre branding.

Robotsexnickels (sign: RSN), which officially launched on 19th July, offers a 600-year-long mining schedule – yes, 600 years – and a month-to-month reward structure that fluctuates throughout the year.

According to the official Bitcoin Talk post:

“Robotsexnickels is a secure anonymous cryptocurrency with a primary purpose of providing slick lubrication for frisky robot jiggy-jiggy. There is a 1% premine to cover bounties and web hosting costs. No humans.”

For its out-of-the-ordinary approach to the mining lifetime length, RSN has won this week’s Strange Alt of the Week award.

With an exact mining schedule of 603 years, the network will produce approximately 3.8 million robotsexnickels. According to the developer, “this roller-coaster shape is designed to discourage miners from dropping in and out short term and reward the smart bots who stick around.”

It’s unclear how long the coin will last with this kind of schedule, but in the words of one community member, the premine alone is worth six years of mining.

RSN is said to offer TOR implementation for anonymous transactions, and according to the developer, a “Robot Sex Nickel Slot Machine” is currently in development.

Have a tip about a notable happening in the altcoin world? Email CoinDesk at stan@coindesk.com.

Disclaimer: This article should not be viewed as an endorsement. Please do your own extensive research before you consider investing in the altcoin space.

  Source : http://www.coindesk.com

PayPal Hosts Packed ‘Introduction to Bitcoin’ Event

Payments company PayPal, a subsidiary of auction site eBay, hosted a bitcoin event called PayPal TechXploration on 31st July.

The ‘Town Hall’ space at the PayPal offices in San Jose, California, was packed with hundreds of people, many having to stand. The meetup page for the bitcoin event lists over 700 people that had indicated a desire to attend.

Part of a regular series held by the company, the event included employees of PayPal and eBay, alongside members of the bitcoin community, and was intended to introduce people to the concepts and technology behind bitcoin.

The main speaker on the day was Scott Robinson, who heads the bitcoin incubator program at the Plug and Play Technology Center and hosts a weekly Silicon Valley Bitcoin meetup there every Tuesday night.

During Robinson’s presentation, he pointed out that many people probably have not heard about bitcoin because for most, the US dollar has been an effective currency.

He told the audience:

“We’ve never really been asked questions about the dollar. We’ve never really worried about the dollar.”

Bitcoin technology

Explaining bitcoin to newcomers is not easy, especially with a large audience. Robinson tackled teaching bitcoin at the event by describing bitcoin’s novel approach. “Bitcoin is both a protocol and a currency,” he said.

Part of Robinson’s talk was dedicated to discussing how bitcoin solves the Byzantine Generals problem, an issue that other digital currency predecessors to bitcoin failed to figure out.

Robinson said:

“The practical consequence of solving this problem means that any Internet user can send digital property to one another.”

During his presentation, Robinson asked how many people at the event owned bitcoin, and about one-third of the audience raised their hands.

 

 

Scott Robinson of Plug and Play asking how many people own bitcoin at the PayPal event.

Startup showcase

Robinson’s goal presenting at the event was twofold: talking about the potential for bitcoin, and informing the audience about the rise and role of bitcoin startups.

“Bitcoin is a technology that is five years old. It seems a lot like the Internet,” he said.

Robinson’s slide comparing bitcoin with early stages of the internet. Source: CoinDesk

He also announced that Plug and Play is offering bitcoin startups $25,000 in funding, office space and mentorship for interested entrepreneurs.

To provide examples of successful bitcoin ventures pushing the technology towards mainstream use, two bitcoin startups briefly talked at the event after Robinson’s presentation.

One was 37Coins, an SMS bitcoin wallet service that allows the unbanked access to financial resources via bitcoin and any cellphone.

Jonathan Zobro, co-founder of the company, said:

“We’re solving the fundamental first step by pushing bitcoin to people.”

To demonstrate its service, the startup gave away $2 in bitcoin to every event attendee who texted a displayed phone number, which then created a 37Coins bitcoin wallet and sent the initial bitcoin balance to that person via SMS.

Xapo’s director of client services, Fernando Gouveia, also briefly spoke about his company, which has been one of the most successful in raising venture capital in the bitcoin space with $40m raised in total.

PayPal and bitcoin

Founded in 1998, PayPal became successful making Internet payments super easy by allowing its users to send money via email addresses.

PayPal is now a large company under the eBay umbrella, and bitcoin as well as other digital currencies have become obvious competitors to its business model.

Scott Robinson talking bitcoin at the PayPal HQ.

In June, eBay CEO John Donahoe said that bitcoin is more than just on the company’s “radar screen” and that it will have to find a way to integrate digital currencies.

However, it’s also possible Donahoe and his team might be developing an in-house solution to compete with cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin.

At the beginning of this year, CoinDesk reported PayPal had filed a patent to develop digital tokens – a sign it may plan to rival bitcoin in the space.

And, although purely coincidental, PayPal’s bitcoin event happened the same day Stripe announced investment in a new project called Stellar with Mt. Gox creator and Ripple Labs co-founder Jed McCaleb.

Stellar has built an open payment platform for money, digital or otherwise, complete with its own altcoin, hoping developers will use its API to allow consumers to transact in any form of money they ultimately choose.

Source : http://www.coindesk.com

Bitcoin Foundation Urges Court to Dismiss Charge in Florida LocalBitcoins Case

The Bitcoin Foundation, the digital currency’s chief trade organization, has filed an amicus brief in connection with a Florida state criminal case involving Pascal Reid, a LocalBitcoins.com user who was arrested and charged with operating an unauthorized money transmission business and money laundering earlier this year.

An amicus brief, known formally as an amicus curiae, is a legal tool that can be exercised by parties with strong interests in a case who want to ensure an outcome that is consistent with their views.

In this instance, members of the Bitcoin Foundation told CoinDesk, the intent of the filing is to ensure that the broader bitcoin community in Florida isn’t subject to laws that put undue restrictions on their ability to transact with the digital currency.

Speaking to CoinDesk, Bitcoin Foundation Global Policy Counsel Jim Harper, stressed this viewpoint, saying that the filing does not mean the organization is supporting the defendant and his actions in the case directly.

Harper explained:

“The case illustrates the need for clarity in bitcoin regulation, both civil and criminal, and that’s a reason why we participated.”

Reid was arrested in February allegedly during an undercover sting operation in which Florida police officers posed as fraudsters seeking to launder cash by purchasing bitcoin.

Filing details

In particular, the amicus brief seeks to dismiss the charge that Reid was an unauthorized money transmitter under Florida Statute 560.125 because he was operating not as a corporate entity, but as an individual.

Harper told CoinDesk:

“If individuals’ bitcoin transactions made them subject to the registration and recordkeeping requirements of businesses, that would be a heavy impediment to bitcoin use. Whether the charges are serious or trivial, the law should be applied accurately and based on its terms.”

This viewpoint was further stressed by Brian Klein, of the Foundation’s Legal Advocacy Committee, who wrote in a recent blog post:

“The foundation’s position at its core is this: state prosecutors are improperly applying Florida statutes regulating ‘money service businesses’ to individuals conducting peer-to-peer sales of bitcoins.”

Notably, Michell Adbar Espinoza, a Miami Beach native, was also arrested during the sting and charged with illegal money transmission. However, a Bitcoin Foundation spokesperson said that the cases are separate and that only Reid has moved to dismiss the money transmission charge.

The two defendants were allegedly arrested after agreeing to convert $30,000 in laundered money into bitcoin. Espinoza is estimated to have completed more than 150 bitcoin sales via LocalBitcoins during the six months leading up to his arrest.

Both Espinoza and Reid filed to have the money laundering charges dismissed on the grounds that under IRS guidance, bitcoin is not legal money. A similar defense was evoked by the legal representation of Ross Ulbricht, the alleged ringleader behind online black market Silk Road, but the claim has since been struck down by a court judge.

Further arguments

The filing goes on to state the Foundation’s belief that the statute does not apply to Reid because Florida’s definition of a money transmitter is limited to “a corporation, limited liability company, limited liability partnership or foreign entity qualified to do business in the state”.

Further, it advocates that until such time as Florida decides to regulate bitcoin, the state should not apply an “ambiguous criminal statute” and “force its application when that application is uncertain at best”. Florida regulators have only thus far issued a consumer bitcoin warning, which was distributed to the public in March.

Harper suggested to CoinDesk that the Bitcoin Foundation may be likely to submit further filings in similar cases that could help define bitcoin laws globally, concluding:

“Early cases are precedent-setters, and the foundation wants to see that the laws are applied well.”

 Source : http://www.coindesk.com

PropinaBitcoin Promotes Bitcoin in Latin America with Restaurant Tipping Service

PropinaBitcoin, a new project that seeks to promote digital currency awareness in Latin America by encouraging the use of bitcoin for real-world tipping, has officially launched.

Described by developer Nubis Bruno as a grassroots initiative, PropinaBitcoin is a free online service that allows bitcoin users to print paper wallets that can then be left as tips at restaurants and bars. Those who receive the paper wallet then visit PropinaBitcoin’s website where they are given detailed instructions on how to retrieve the funds.

Bruno, who also serves as the chief product officer for Latin America-focused bitcoin exchange Bitex.la, framed the service as an informal project aimed at connecting new bitcoin users to popular industry services. The site refers users to Bitex.la, peer-to-peer trading platform ConectaBitcoin, bitcoin-friendly merchant listings site CoinMap.org and bitcoin wallet provider Blockchain.

Speaking to CoinDesk, Bruno indicated that the strengths of the project are its design and community support. The look of the tipping vouchers notably mimics traditional bank notes so that recipients better recognize that the paper slips they’ve received have value.

Bruno explained:

“The paper wallet design gets their attention and suggests value [...] I think people living on a fixed income in Argentine pesos have the most to gain from a currency like bitcoin, and giving out small amounts is a good incentive for them to inform themselves and learn about it.”

The project was originally proposed on the Bitcoin Argentina Facebook group, where it received widespread support, garnering nearly 70 comments as of press time. The software itself is a fork of Bitaddress.org, an open-source bitcoin wallet generator.

Currently, the website is available in Spanish only. The project was co-developed by Manuel Beaudroit.

Using PropinaBitcoin

Site users who want to print their own tickets can follow the prompts at the bottom of the website to begin using the program.

By clicking on the ‘Print your own tickets’ command, users have the option to create and print 12 unique tickets.

Users then send bitcoin to the QR code printed on the slips, stocking the paper wallets with the value they want to leave as a gratuity.

Bruno said that he believes the resulting offering will appeal to local restaurant workers, in part because of the industry’s cash-friendly culture. He said tips are rarely paid with credit cards and that many businesses only accept cash.

The nature of the design also makes it secure for users, Bruno said, adding:

“The paper wallets are generated in the user’s browser so PropinaBitcoin does not even know about the bills being printed by others.”

Increasing awareness

Generating support from Argentina’s enthusiastic bitcoin community will be a continued goal of the PropinaBitcoin project. One way it hopes to keep the conversation about the initiative going, for example, is through a dedicated Facebook page.

There, users are encouraged to post images of PropinaBitcoin tips that they leave in an effort to increase overall usership.

With the feedback phase over, Bruno is now excited to put the idea into practice, in what he hopes could help further develop the bitcoin conversation in Latin America. He concluded:

“We’re giving out bitcoin tips anytime we can and we’re receiving feedback from people leaving their own tips.”

 Source : http://www.coindesk.com  

7 Unique Ways to Spend Your Bitcoin

So you have bitcoins and want to spend them, but you are not sure what to buy? We all know you can purchase items off Newegg or Dell, but what if you don’t want to buy electronics? You want those novelty products that make your friends jealous and quite possibly end up on a shelf in your office gathering dust before ending up as the perfect gift at a white elephant party. Here are seven ways to spend your bitcoins that you probably didn’t know a

 

1. Tickets to Space

While this one won’t end up on your shelf, it will make your friends envious. Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic Space flight company is now accepting payment via bitcoins. You’ll need several bitcoins to purchase a seat to fly into space. A seat on Virgin Galactic costs $250,000 which is a little over 416 bitcoins at a going rate of $600 per coin. Only 405 coins more to go for me before I book my seat.

 

2. IRobot Vacuum Cleaner.

Does your partner complain you don’t do enough chores around the house? Maybe it’s time to purchase this little guy. While these robots are not programmed with The Three Laws of Robotics, the worst thing these guys could do is clean the floor extremely well – and I’m okay with that. Not only can you sit back on the sofa and read the news from your favorite cryptocurrency news site but you can also point to some tangible object and say, “We bought that with our bitcoins.”

 

3. A hand for your Iphone

Admit it, this will spend more time on the shelf then on your phone, but that won’t stop you for purchasing it. This novelty product is shaped like a human hand and allows you to talk on the phone while holding someone’s something’s hand. Why does the forever alone meme come to mind right now? Let’s be fair, there are endless opportunities for the partial joker out there – admittedly most of them begin with “can someone lend me a hand?”

 

 4. Punnet

“Add a bit of zest to your wardrobe with these hand crocheted organic bamboo yarn beads, strung on waxed cotton.“ is the tag-line for this product. I see this on the rear view mirror of a VW bug or around the neck of the driver in the VW Type 2 Bus. After doing some browsing on their website they do offer some pretty cool items, and their recycled gallery and textile studio is very interesting. Take a look around.

 

5. Transformers Megatron USB Drive

Who doesn’t like the Transformers? Age of Extinction grossed over 8.75 million on the midnight screening in North America, which was the third biggest for 2014. For those of us who need to exhibit our fandom, there’s this little guy. The 4GB flash drive of Megatron is a 2.5” tall and uses hi-speed USB 2.0, technology the transformers would be proud of – maybe.

 

6. Vinyl Records

Nothing beats the sound of vinyl, unless that’s the sound of high-resolution audio. That’s right; you can purchase vinyl records with your bitcoins now and there is a surprisingly large selection for you to choose among. Now if only they sold the turntable record player as well.

 

7. Female Voice

Have a product you need to advertise but you don’t sound like Bruce Buffer, or Don LaFontaine? Maybe you need a softer touch or perhaps you don’t know where to begin when it comes to voice recording – yes it takes more than a microphone and the pre-installed Sound Recorder on your PC. Stephanie Murphy offers her voice and will accept Bitcoin as payment. She even offers a 20% discount for those who use Bitcoin as their payment method.

There you have it, seven completely unique products and services you can purchase with your bitcoins. For me, I think I’ll start a campaign to raise money for my trip into space. What will you buy?

http://www.cryptocoinsnews.com

The Bitcoin Secret Project Reveals Stellar

 

Jed McCaleb, the founder of MT Gox, Ripple and e-Donkey, has finally revealed his much anticipated Secret Bitcoin Project. Stellar, a new payment protocol and currency, aims to bridge the gap between cryptocurrencies and fiat by allowing easy and instant exchanges between currencies.

The payment protocol, much like Ripple, is based on gateways, which act as banks, holding their user’s currency in return for an IOU. An IOU, of say Bitcoin, can then easily be exchanged for an IOU of say USD, via Stellar’s inbuilt decentralized exchange and without the gateway taking part. The holder of the new Bitcoin IOU can then redeem the IOU from the gateway. It is therefore a trust based system as you need to be sure that the gateway will redeem the IOU, but with low barriers to entry as anyone can become a gateway.

Stellar is also a currency in itself, which may gain value either through speculation or due to a demand for transactions, but it is meant to act as a “conversion path” for the payment protocol as each transaction burns 0.00001 stellars. Most of the currency, 95%, will initially be given out for free, 50% will be distributed to account holders who sign up for stellars and log in via facebook, 25% will be given to charities, and another 25% will be distributed to Bitcoin and Ripple holders.

We will take a snapshot of the Bitcoin blockchain at a particular date and will set up a claim page that will allow bitcoin holders to receive their pro-rata share of the stellars reserved under this program by verifying they control their address from that blockchain snapshot. For example, a user owning .001% of the bitcoins in the blockchain snapshot would receive .001% of the stellars set aside for bitcoin holders under this program, or 190,000 stellars.

Both the payment protocol and the currency differ substantially from Bitcoin as there is no “mining”, but rather a node consensus network, and furthermore the currency is inflationary in nature at a rate of 1% a year. There is little, if any difference, between Stellar and Ripple however. Indeed, the Stellar announcement suggests that Stellar is a continuation of Ripple for Jed McCaleb, who recently publicly announced that he was to sell all of his Ripple holdings due to what may have been an argument over the way the Ripple currency, much of which is still held by Ripple Labs, was to be distributed. Stellar aims to avoid this issue by distributing all of the currency, except for 5%, but it is yet to be seen how quickly the Stellar Development Foundation, a nonprofit organization, will be able to do so or to what extent Bitcoin and ripple holders will claim their share.

The reception of the new payment protocol and currency has been mixed. Stripe recently made a blog post stating that they had invested three million dollars on Stellar’s development and that Stripe believes “that a system with properties like Stellar’s should exist in the world”. Bitcoin holders however expressed much skepticism, pointing out that a central entity controlled the distribution of the currency and that trust was needed.

However, almost 2500 people have claimed their Stellars so far, amounting to 14 million out of 100 billion.

Source : http://www.cryptocoinsnews.com

Bitcoin over the counter payment system DC POS goes global on day one

DC POS, a Melbourne based technology company, has launched a Point of Sale payment system that allows bricks and mortar businesses to accept bitcoin over the counter in exchange for goods and services. 

DC POS provides a simple, efficient and secure way for customers and merchants to pay with and accept bitcoin over the counter.

The self-funded start-up has developed the software that makes digital money easy for retailers. DC POS is an acronym for Digital Currency at Point Of Sale. 
DC POS is moving bitcoin from a speculative and online digital currency to a real world, over-the-counter payment system with all the convenience of credit cards and lightning fast transaction speeds, at a fraction of the cost.

“We have put our product through extensive user testing, security auditing, and field trials.” Said Managing Director Mike Nelson. “Our development process has been extensively documented to align with international quality standards.

“We are very excited to be launching our world class product globally”

DC POS launched 26th May and saw immediate uptake in the USA, Europe and Australia. In just three weeks, DC POS services over 100 Merchants using the system and more are joining daily.

“We have bars, fashion retailers, eateries, entertainment venues and bookstores receiving payment in bitcoin with the DC POS system,” said Nelson.

The DC POS Software is platform agnostic, and will run on any device with a web browser and an internet connection, making entry into the world of digital currency easy for retailers with no specialist hardware required.

Designed with an intuitive interface, DC POS is easier to use than a cash register. Counter staff are able learn to use the terminal in minutes.

DC POS uniquely allows retailers the freedom to choose where they would like to store their bitcoin and where they wish to turn it into traditional currency. This makes DC POS a truly international solution, enabling access to local banking systems over much of the globe.

DC POS is part of a very active, Melbourne-based bitcoin community with regular meet ups boasting more than 100 attendees, and a passionate member of the vibrant Melbourne tech start-up scene.

“Decentralised digital currencies such as Bitcoin are the inevitable future of money, enabling the simplicity and utility of paying for things with your smartphone. DC POS makes accepting bitcoin simple, safe and fast for merchants,”said Mr Nelson.

Source : http://btcbible.com

Fed Actions Confirm Legality of Bitcoin Sale; Key States Remain on the Fence

Actions Speak Louder than Words; Feds Agree to Auction Bitcoin

Bitcoins seized in connection with drug trafficking were auctioned off by authorities on June 27. The auction took place on June 27 from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. EDT. The property was sold in nine blocks of 3,000 bitcoins, and one block of approximately 2,656 bitcoins, for a total of approximately 29,657 bitcoins.

The winning bidder will receive a signed Bill of Sale from the United States Marshals Service in connection with the transfer of the bitcoins. By such Bill of Sale, the US will by its actions confirm that bitcoin may be sold to the general public, thereby finally endorsing the concept of bitcoin fungibility, albeit, ironically, for its own account.

This historic transaction is being cited as evidence that a bitcoin sale does not constitute a sale of securities under Federal law.

The bitcoin will apparently not be sold by the US Marshal in a registered securities offering, or one that expressly meets an exemption from registration, as the auction has been publicly advertised without typical required boilerplate securities contract provisions. Concerns that the SEC might take the position that bitcoin constitutes a “security” are not consistent with the Federal government’s proposed sale terms. It is noted that the bitcoin being sold in the auction is freely marketable by the purchaser, without resale restrictions that would be typically required after a sale of unregistered securities.

The auction comes on the heels of IRS guidance regarding the taxation of bitcoin transactions. It appears that the US government has finally accepted that there will be no stopping bitcoin sales anytime soon.

 

 

Most States Still on the Fence

As the Federal government has clarified its position, most states have reacted slowly to the bitcoin phenomena. Under Federal law, a company that is in the business of exchanging fiat currency for bitcoin is required to register as a Money Service Business (MSB). However it remains unclear in most states whether a state money transmitter license will also be required for such activity.

While New York is working on its BitLicense regime to license virtual currency exchange businesses, Maryland has indicated that virtual currency remains unregulated in its state. Montana and South Carolina do not register money transmitters at all. Other states have issued their own pronouncements about bitcoin but most states have remained silent on whether exchange businesses are required to be licensed as money transmitters, although applications are often nonetheless considered by regulators on a “case by case” basis.

Source : http://onbitcoin.com

13th Million Bitcoin Mined

 

It is in truth a minor milestone but for those who like “large whole numbers” block 310001 has just been mined by Ghash.IO pushing the total amount of bitcoin to 13,000,000.

That means that there only another 8 million to be mined over the next 140 years or so until we reach the total maximum of 21,000,000.

The mining process used to mint new bitcoins and secure the network originally paid out 50 bitcoins for each block but that bitcoin reward halves every 21,0000 blocks.  Currently the bitcoin reward is 25 bitcoin every block making it so block 310,001 contained the 13th million bitcoin to enter circulation.

At the current price of somewhere about $622 per bitcoin that puts the market cap at $8,086,000,000 (or about 8 billion) US Dollars.

Because of the anonymity features of bitcoin here is no way of actually knowing how many of those 13 million are actually in circulation or who owns them.  It is supposed that  Bitcoin inventor Satoshi Nakamoto may have close to 1 million, there are many threads on the bitcoin community site Bitcoin Talk about people loosing bitcoins by loosing their private key’s but in the end, a total amount of bitcoins in circulation is just speculation.

However, we can now say that there are 13 million!

Source : http://mineforeman.com

  

Circle Issues $50 to Customer to Cover Unexpected Cash Advance Fee

Bitcoin financial services startup Circle Internet Financial has issued at least one user a $50 credit in order to help refund that customer for possible cash advance fees he may have incurred using the service.

Circle, which is currently undertaking a closed test of its platform, appears to be responding to criticisms regarding the charging of cash advance fees, a common headache experienced by those attempting to buy bitcoin with a credit card. As previously reported by PandoDaily, the company was made aware of the cash advance fees and, at the time, promised to investigate the issue.

In an email posted to the bitcoin subreddit, the company informed the user in question that because he had used a credit card, he was at risk of a cash advance fee.

The email read:

“We recently learned that some of our customers are being charged cash advance fees by their credit card issuing banks for deposits made to Circle. We noticed you used a card with us, and we hope that you have not been charged these fees.”

It added: “Just in case, we’ve sent you $50 in bitcoin for any inconvenience.”

Community response

Community reaction to the development was generally positive.

For example, some observers took to the subreddit to decry cash advance fees as yet another injustice of the traditional financial system, and the customer who received the $50 in bitcoin said that he was pleased with the beta test thus far.

The positive remarks were a far cry from the generally mixed reaction of reddit users to Circle announcements. In recent months, reddit users have taken to the forum to speak out about Circle’s closed testing, its business practices and past statements made by its CEO Jeremy Allaire that have at times incited the bitcoin development and altcoin communities.

For a behind-the-scenes look at Circle’s bitcoin banking platform, read our full preview of the program.

Source : www.coindesk.com