Bitcoin

• Frustrated by Karzai, U.S. Shifts Afghanistan Exit Plans (WSJ)
• Yellen Testimony Guide From Payrolls Report to Emerging Markets (BBG)
• Gold hits three-month high, shares up ahead of Yellen (Reuters)
• Tightfisted New Owners Put Heinz on Diet (WSJ)
• Senator describes "gruesome" bin Laden photos (Reuters)
• More reasons for the ongoing economic contraction: U.S. Winter Storm Seen Spreading Snow, Sleet Across South (BBG)
• Barclays Cuts Up to 12,000 Jobs as Quarterly Profit Falls  (BBG)
• Boeing Considering 787-Size Medium-Range Jetliners (WSJ)
• AOL Chief Apologizes for ‘Distressed Babies’ Comment (BBG)

"I think Bitcoin will face serious challenges in the long run, although I believe such digital currencies could have a place in the economy in more well thought-through structures with values better linked to real assets."

In light of its 19th quarter of losses in a row, calls for a Federal bailout, and recent consideration of adding a Bitcoin exchange to its non-bank financial services (via a "postcoin"), we thought a glimpse how "postal" the USPS is set to become was useful. Some will call it progress of course but as the following chart shows, the number of US Postal Service employees has fallen to 50-year lows (and would and could be more) - "The Postal Service is doing its part within the bounds of law to right-size the organization,"  blaming federal mandates that restrict how it can conduct business and excessive funding requirements for its employee pension plan.

Now that Bitcoin exchange Mt.Gox has terminally discredited itself following the latest, and likely last, withdrawal halt announced late last week which sent the value of Bitcoin tumbling by 25%, Bitcoin traders are left with just two exchange options on which to transact: BTC-e and Bitstamp. And for those using the former to buy and sell the virtual digital currency, things went from bad to worse a few short hours ago, when Bitcoin had its very own "Waddell and Reed" moment, when the price of Bitcoin cratered by over 80% in the span of seconds, after a modest block of just under 6000 Bitcoins sent the price plunging from over $600 to $102.

• Yellen's first test (Reuters)
• Let weak banks die, says eurozone super-regulator (FT)
• Yellen, Carney Face Explaining Policy as Benchmarks Near (BBG)
• Commerzbank Said Seeking Debt Buyers in $6.8 Billion Spain Exit (BBG)
• Junk Yield Premiums Soar on China’s Looming First Default (BBG)
• Millions Trapped in Health-Law Coverage Gap (WSJ)
• Mandel Tops Best-Earning Hedge Funds for Clients in 2013 (BBG)
• Swiss Brace for Sour EU Relations After Immigration Vote (BBG)
• Detroit Bankruptcy Talks to Resume (WSJ)

Better watch out, bitcoin!

Mt.Gox has been the dominant Bitcoin exchange pretty much since the beginning. In its brief history, it has suffered several bad setbacks. There were plenty of reasons to give them a pass in the past, and many did. It was early. But not this time. Bitcoin is no longer in Phase 1 of its evolutionary cycle; Phase 2 for Bitcoin began in earnest back in November 2013, when the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held its first hearings on the topic. Those hearings made it clear that, at least for the moment, no significant roadblocks would be put in place to prevent people from transacting with one another using the crypto-currency. Bitcoin is becoming serious, and serious means serious accountability.

Mt.Gox, the largest exchange for the online digital currency, was forced to halt withdrawals (but not trading) this morning. Due to an increase in withdrawal requests the exchange's systems had technical problems and in order "to understand the issue thoroughly, the system must be in static state," they reported. The exchange said it would resolve the problem as soon as possible and "apologize[d] for the sudden short notice." Interestingly this seemed to rapidly remove Mt.Gox's modest premium to the other exchanges and bring them all back inline around $700 as the price recovered.

While Bitcoin has been relatively more stable than high-frequency-traded US equity markets in the last few weeks, the news that HFT tool provider Perseus Telecom will be accepting Bitcoin for its services. As The FT reports, move highlights high-frequency traders’ increasing interest in trading Bitcoin as global regulators indicate a growing acceptance of fast-emerging digital currencies - despite several high-profile arrests.Perseus CEO, Jock Mr Percy said the extension of high-frequency trading into virtual currencies would change the nature of the Bitcoin market over time.

• Draghi as ECB Master of Suspense Keeps Investors on Edge (BBG)
• Abe lays out detailed plan for expanding defense powers (Nikkei)
• Inflation Fuels Crises in Two Latin Nations (WSJ)
• Obama walks into crossfire of Asian tensions (FT)
• Harvard Makes Professor Disclose More After Blinkx Slides (BBG)
• Hedge Funds Rework Currency Positions in Market Drop (BBG)
• Canada, U.S. Strike Tax-Information Sharing Deal (WSJ)
• Indonesia calls for greater clarity from Fed on tapering (FT)
• Sony to cut 5,000 jobs, split off PC, TV operations (Reuters)

People Powered Privacy Savior ... Or Honey Trap Pushed By the Central Banks and TBTF?

Worried about “pre-crime?” What about “pre-crash?”

The geniuses at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTS) are so concerned about your “safety,” they have decided to take it into their own hands and make it mandatory that your car wirelessly communicate with other vehicles on the road. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx went so far as to say the technology could save “thousands of lives and even prevent accidents in the first place.” The concept of “pre-crash” has been born.

All that glitters is not gold, particularly if you don't know how to look at it.

In 2008, a mysterious person or group using the apparent pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto unveiled a new digital currency called Bitcoin that appeared to solve some of its predecessors’ problems. As Bitcoin rose in value the number of high-profile crimes and crashes rose apace. Throughout that boom and bust, Bitcoin retained a core user base that saw its possibilities and worked to overcome its flaws by developing point-of-sale hardware and online merchant services while lessening its dependence on a small number of exchanges. And then, just when the outside world had stopped paying attention, Bitcoin recovered. From under $20 at the beginning of 2013 it rose to $240, crashed to below $100, and then in one dramatic arc soared to more than $1,000. In early 2014 Bitcoin’s market value exceeded $10 billion and the number of merchants willing to accept it was soaring. The market appears to have spoken: Bitcoin is for real.

That unpopular short Apple/long Google pair trade's still paying in spades. In addition, an hour and a half of nerd celebrity Bitcoin and crowdfuning equiy in startups.