And therein lies the big problem with Bitcoin as an investment.
Although I think cryptocurrencies are here to stay, and the tech is a genuine innovation, the same tech is freely available for anyone wanting to start their own rival coins.
The proliferation of rivals means there is now no longer any reason for the price of Bitcoin to keep rising, as rival coins start sucking away the capital.
And indeed , despite sky-high ongoing hype, you can see the price of Bitcoin gradually sinking over the last few weeks (<US $800) as rival coins gain traction and suck away capital, like air leaking out a tyre.
BITCOIN as an alternative to regular currency
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andyfuller
- Posts: 4619
- Joined: Wed Mar 25, 2009 12:23 pm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25919482US makes Bitcoin exchange arrests
Now this is interesting...very interesting indeed!
"Most people think of bitcoin as a form of money, if they think of bitcoin at all. But 19-year-old hacker Vitalik Buterin sees it as something more — much more. He sees it as a new way of building just about any internet application.
The bitcoin digital currency is driven by open source software that runs across thousands of machines around the globe. Borrowing code from this rather clever piece of software, independent hackers have already built applications such as the Twitter-style social network Twister, the encrypted e-mail alternative Bitmessage, and the unseizable domain name system Namecoin. But Buterin believes that many other applications can benefit from the genius of the bitcoin software, and that’s why he’s joining forces with several other hackers to create something called Ethereum.
Buterin believes so many other applications can benefit from the genius of the bitcoin software, and that’s why he has joined forces with several other hackers to create something called Ethereum.
He envisions Ethereum as an online service that lets you build practically anything in the image of bitcoin and run it across a worldwide network of machines. At its core, bitcoin is a way of reliably storing and moving digital objects or pieces of information. Today, it stores and moves money, but Buterin believes the same basic system could give rise to a new breed of social networks, data storage systems and securities markets — all operated without the help of a central authority."
http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2014/01/ethereum/
"Most people think of bitcoin as a form of money, if they think of bitcoin at all. But 19-year-old hacker Vitalik Buterin sees it as something more — much more. He sees it as a new way of building just about any internet application.
The bitcoin digital currency is driven by open source software that runs across thousands of machines around the globe. Borrowing code from this rather clever piece of software, independent hackers have already built applications such as the Twitter-style social network Twister, the encrypted e-mail alternative Bitmessage, and the unseizable domain name system Namecoin. But Buterin believes that many other applications can benefit from the genius of the bitcoin software, and that’s why he’s joining forces with several other hackers to create something called Ethereum.
Buterin believes so many other applications can benefit from the genius of the bitcoin software, and that’s why he has joined forces with several other hackers to create something called Ethereum.
He envisions Ethereum as an online service that lets you build practically anything in the image of bitcoin and run it across a worldwide network of machines. At its core, bitcoin is a way of reliably storing and moving digital objects or pieces of information. Today, it stores and moves money, but Buterin believes the same basic system could give rise to a new breed of social networks, data storage systems and securities markets — all operated without the help of a central authority."
http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2014/01/ethereum/
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andyfuller
- Posts: 4619
- Joined: Wed Mar 25, 2009 12:23 pm
Price has nose dived today after the biggest exchange has halted all Bitcoin withdrawals due to tech issues.
http://thenextweb.com/insider/2014/02/0 ... al-issues/
http://thenextweb.com/insider/2014/02/0 ... al-issues/
Crashing hard, down to $US 670 now!andyfuller wrote:Price has nose dived today after the biggest exchange has halted all Bitcoin withdrawals due to tech issues.
http://thenextweb.com/insider/2014/02/0 ... al-issues/
The assets of Mt Gox. have been seized by US regulators. I don't think it's tech issues Andy, I think the Mt Gox. people have been bullshitting for several months now...there had been an increasing back-log of withdrawals not being made.. I think Mt.Gox. were out of capital (i.e., they'd been spending investors money) and trying to bullshit to hold the price up.
Mean-while, another major on-line wallet was cleaned out by hackers and collapsed, and in Russia, Bitcoin was banned.
It's panic stations now. The music has stopped...there are no more 'greater fools' to sell to and everyone is running for the exit.
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superfrank
- Posts: 2762
- Joined: Fri Aug 14, 2009 8:28 pm
flash crash to $102
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-02-1 ... 80-seconds
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-02-1 ... 80-seconds
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CaerMyrddin
- Posts: 1271
- Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 10:47 am
You could think some mad bomber had hit the market from that graph. A whopping 6000 bitcoins did the trick, amazing!
Paper money and coins are the greatest confidence trick of all time. A very clever trick that has allowed societies to develop and prosper in a way not possible if we don’t have an agreed medium of exchange.
For the trick to work properly all (or almost all) members of the relevant society need to be “in on it”. We all have to agree that the fiver in our pocket buys us a pint or a loaf of bread or 1 minute of back massage.
Once enough people stop believing, the music stops and things get ugly.
I think the bitcoin song is coming to an end.
For the trick to work properly all (or almost all) members of the relevant society need to be “in on it”. We all have to agree that the fiver in our pocket buys us a pint or a loaf of bread or 1 minute of back massage.
Once enough people stop believing, the music stops and things get ugly.
I think the bitcoin song is coming to an end.
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superfrank
- Posts: 2762
- Joined: Fri Aug 14, 2009 8:28 pm
Rubbish.marko236 wrote:Bitcoin is no different than a pyramid system, most people will lose.
Money has to be controlled by a goverment to be worth anything, Bitcoin is based on nothing it is basically worthless.
The main attraction of Bitcoin is that govts have nothing to do with it - apart from the usual suspects (China, Russia) trying to ban it.
What's so great about being backed by the debt of bankrupt govts? The US has just voted to increase the $17.2tn debt 'limit' and will run a budget deficit of about $514bn in the 2014 fiscal year. The Fed has printed $4tn and prints another $65Bn every month. Does that give you confidence in the $?
Debt-based fiat money is the ultimate pyramid scheme.
Price sinking faster than lead ballast now... dropping towards $US 500.
The heat from governments is really going on now! Outright ban in Russia, and US regulators are arresting people left and right...a couple of people were recently arrested in the States for no other reason than that they were 'trading heavily' on Bitcoin. And believe it or not, even US college kids making Bitcoin apps are getting subponeas!
http://venturebeat.com/2014/02/12/new-j ... ting-back/
"The MIT students behind Bitcoin mining program Tidbit won the “most innovative” award at a recent hackathon.
But they will soon face a ruling from another kind of judge: one employed by the state of New Jersey.
In early December, a few weeks after the hackathon, the New Jersey division of consumer affairs issued a subpoena to 19-year-old Tidbit developer Jeremy Rubin."
The heat from governments is really going on now! Outright ban in Russia, and US regulators are arresting people left and right...a couple of people were recently arrested in the States for no other reason than that they were 'trading heavily' on Bitcoin. And believe it or not, even US college kids making Bitcoin apps are getting subponeas!
http://venturebeat.com/2014/02/12/new-j ... ting-back/
"The MIT students behind Bitcoin mining program Tidbit won the “most innovative” award at a recent hackathon.
But they will soon face a ruling from another kind of judge: one employed by the state of New Jersey.
In early December, a few weeks after the hackathon, the New Jersey division of consumer affairs issued a subpoena to 19-year-old Tidbit developer Jeremy Rubin."
Ronnie O'Sullivan on Keiser report
http://rt.com/shows/keiser-report/episo ... eiser-013/
The Rocket doesnt contribute much to the debate on crypto currency but Keiser tips him to win the world title.
WTF
http://rt.com/shows/keiser-report/episo ... eiser-013/
The Rocket doesnt contribute much to the debate on crypto currency but Keiser tips him to win the world title.
WTF
The anonymous online marketplace Silk Road 2 says it has been hacked resulting in the loss of all its customers' bitcoins.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-26187725
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-26187725