Category Archives: News
Bitcoin Mining, An Infographic
The team over at The Cash Store has put together an interesting infographic about Bitcoin mining, what it takes, and the impact it has on the Bitcoin economy and beyond.
Click on the image below for full resolution:
Top Bitcoin News Last Week: Tradehill, Regulation, ATM, FinCEN, More
Bitcoin News
A roundup of the top Bitcoin news from August 26 to September 1:
Tuesday, August 27
Wednesday, August 28
Thursday, August 29
Friday, August 30
Bitcoin Exchange Tradehill Suspends Trading Due to Regulation Concerns
More Troubles for Bitcoin Exchange Tradehill
Tradehill is a US-based Bitcoin exchange that has grown in popularity as the chief competitor to Japan-based Mt. Gox. Tradehill has tried to position itself as an exchange for traders, especially those looking to move larger blocks of BTC.
Now the company has run into troubles, and has posted a bulletin on its site notifying users that it has suspended trading “due to banking and regulatory issues.”
In February 2012, Tradehill shut down “due to increased regulation” and a dispute of $100,000 with one of its payment processors. CEO Jered Kenna posted the announcement on Bitcointalk. The company later bounced back from this issues and has been on the rise, until this latest suspension of business.
Below is the full bulletin from Tradehill. We have reached out to the company for further comment.
Many of you have come to know Tradehill as the digital currency exchange of choice over the last six months. We have appreciated your patronage and have delighted in providing a reliable service to help you reach deep liquidity in the Bitcoin market. We have recently made the decision to temporarily suspend trading on the Tradehill platform, due to banking and regulatory issues. This decision has not been made lightly and we regret having to take such action. However, we embrace the silver lining of our situation and plan to take this opportunity to upgrade, improve, and polish our trading platform.
Tradehill registered with FinCEN in August 2013 and is actively engaging with banks and regulators to continue development of future business products and practices.
We would like to thank our clients, current and past partners, supporters, and advocates for all their continued support. The Bitcoin space has proven to be an exciting and dynamic environment. We are proud to have the opportunity to be at the forefront of this new domain.
[Update 11:15AM PT: Tradehill shared with On Bitcoin the following details around their suspended trading]
The Internet Archive Federal Credit Union has experienced operational and regulatory issues and we are no longer able to continue our developing relationship. Both Tradehill and IAFCU were excited about this relationship and both regret this unfortunate outcome. Tradehill’s integration with IAFCU had allowed for clients to buy Bitcoin with a balance in an account with their own name. This allowed clients to trade Bitcoin with funds that were stored in a federally insured institution.
Our clients still have full access to their funds. We are consulting with regulators to define the most appropriate licensing strategy for our current and future business practices. We are also actively engaging with banks and regulators to continue development of best practices for Bitcoin regulation and compliance.
This is only a temporary suspension of trading. We are continuing with planned development of our trading platform, to provide an improved user experience, as well as additional planned products. We hope to resume trading operations soon.
Legal Firm Riddell Williams Hires Bitcoin Experts to Lead Payments Practice
Bitcoin Legal Experts Join Seattle Firm
Two of the leading legal professionals in the Bitcoin industry have joined Seattle-based Riddell Williams to co-chair the Payments practice area and provide expert services to Bitcoin companies. Pictured below are Daniel Friedberg and Ryan Straus, who each have contributed to the emerging Bitcoin business ecosystem.
Friedberg has spoken at industry conferences including Bitcoin London and Bitcoin 2013, and has been quoted in major publications such as Fox Business, Tech Cocktail, and Business Insider. Friedberg has also published his work on the Bitcoin Foundation blog.
Strauss spoke at Bitcoin 2013, and published his writing in American Banker. He was also quoted in The Hill’s regulation blog.
Collectively, they represent some of the major players in the Bitcoin space for Riddell Williams, including exchanges, service companies, wallets, miners, investors, and merchants.
“We provide advice and help our clients implement compliance programs. We also directly interface with both Federal and state regulators to clarify issues,” said Friedberg in an interview with On Bitcoin. “Regulation of financial services business is inevitable and expected. We generally view the regulatory developments as positive steps towards acceptance. It is far better that we are moving towards a regime of regulation than prohibition,” he added.
Friedberg and Straus joined Riddell Williams and co-chair the Payments practice. “Riddell Williams understand the importance of this emerging payment system,” Straus explained. “Bitcoin is a natural fit for our payments group. Clients in emerging markets such as Bitcoin require the highest level of legal knowledge and service in order to make the right decisions.”
Riddell Williams is a Seattle law firm with over 60 lawyers that was founded in 1906 that has a specialty in financial services. Learn more at www.riddellwilliams.com.
Bitcoin ATM RoboCoin Kiosk Goes on Sale for $20,000
Buy and sell Bitcoin with RoboCoin ATM
Calling itself Bitcoin’s First Real ATM, the RoboCoin Kiosk is now accepting pre-orders.
RoboCoin allows buying and selling Bitcoins from a freestanding kiosk that integrates software, bank grade hardware and security.
RoboCoin’s technology makes it a contender in the emerging market for Bitcoin machines. RoboCoin CEO Jordan Kelley was quick to criticize his competition in a blog post, “Seriously, how Bush League is an ‘ATM’ if it can’t do the equivalent of deposits and withdrawals or be left unattended?” Exchange integration with Mt. Gox or Bitstamp delivers dynamic Bitcoin inventory so that trades are placed in real time.
It’s competition includes Lamassu Bitcoin ATM, a table-top machine that turns cash into Bitcoins in seconds, but not sell Bitcoin for cash.
Below is a video showing the features of the RoboCoin ATM Kiosk.
RoboCoin was demonstated at the Bitcoin 2013 Conference in San Jose, and is now ready for production pre-order. A single kiosk costs $20,000, though there is a $18,500 pre-order promotion through September. Business owners will earn a percentage of transactions and attract new and existing Bitcoin users.
RoboCoin to date has received inquiries from over 20 regions including: Canada, Australia, Prague, Kenya, Ireland, the Philippines and Thailand.
And, of course, RoboCoin Kiosks can be purchased with Bitcoin or USD.
