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BitCoin Exchange BitFloor Shuts Down
In an amusing development, one of the key alternative BitCoin exchanges, BitFloor, has just announced it is forced to shut down immediately. It is amusing, because one of the primary reasons attributed by the BTC pundits for the recent crash from $260 to $50 was errors and faults in the primary bitcoin exchange MtGox. Well, with alternative exchanges forced to shut down, this may mean the only "faulty" marketplace will sees it monopoly power increase further. It is also ironic because as BitFloor disclosed it "can no longer provide the same level of USD deposits and withdrawals as we have in the past." Whatever happened to decentralized, and unencumbered by legacy fiat currencies?
The Verge has some more:
Bitcoin exchange BitFloor is closing its doors, halting trading and announcing that it will return everyone’s funds. In an announcement on its main site, the company’s founder, Roman Shtylman, says that "due to circumstances outside [BitFloor’s] control" it "must cease all trading operations indefinitely." More specifically, BitFloor says that because its US bank account is closing it won’t be able to provide the same level of dollar deposits and withdrawals that it has been up to this point. The news comes after weeks of DDoS attacks and technical problems at leading exchange Mt. Gox and a roller coaster ride of price fluctuations that saw Bitcoin tank from a high of over $200 back down to a low below $70. The news was reported by The Next Web.
Back in September, BitFloor was hit with a $250,000 theft after an attacker got access to an unencrypted backup set of keys for the exchange’s wallet — the software through which people (and organizations) access and transfer their coins. The exchange managed to get back online within a few weeks, with Shtylman announcing his intention to repay the stolen funds.
Overall, BitFloor is tiny compared to Mt. Gox — it does less than four percent of that exchange’s trading volume — but it represented an important alternative in the highly concentrated market. At this point it’s still unclear what exactly happened with BitFloor’s US bank account that required such a speedy exit, but a Reddit user points out that the exchange is registered with FinCEN — the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network — indicating that everything was seemingly above board with the US government. We’ve reached out to Bitfloor for comment on what precipitated the closure, and will update if and when we hear back.
In other news, and from the main, and apparently only remaining BitCoin exchange we get:
- Dear Mt. Gox customers. We are currently experiencing a downtime and will update ASAP. Apologies for the delay.
With the electronic market in limbo, at least demand for physical BitCoins appears to be solid to quite solid... Oh wait.
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Richard Garfield did pretty well for himself and some others while creating a whole new genre of gaming that spawned an industry worth billions.
Not bad for a math geek.
"But..... but.....but....... I thought that all we needed was a functioning Internet?"
The first rule of market crashes: Don't Panic! You're not losing anything. But the whole world is changing in the most incredible way, and it is very very good. I will explain mathematically what is happening to the prices, so you can see what you had and what you've lost, and what you'll have now.
The numbers are all going to go way down. But that is just the price. The value of what you own is not going to change. You are simply going to lose something bad and get something good as the prices change.
Once we all understand what is happening there will be great changes in the world for the better. Don't Panic!
http://www.cecm.sfu.ca/~rpearcea/dontpanic.pdf
-1 for this thesis
People are realizing that Japan has the new global reserve currency.
Thr price your mom charges seems to be keeping steady.
No, the "first rule of crashes(/panics)" IS NOT "Don't Panic", the 1st Rule is "get out of the door, first". THAT IS the only "Rule" of panics.
Bit con is as safe as COMEX. Not to worry, your ass ets are safe.
And if you are forced to live off silver right now?
You'll be soon talking to the porcelen gods on a steady basis.
Bitcoins, the NETSCAPE of money.
Umm, you know that Mozilla came out of netscape, right?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozilla#History
Maybe a currency pheonix will rise from the ashes of BTC.
I don't know. But I think people mistakenly look at bitcoin as an investment opportunity instead of what it was really created for. That is to undermine the legitimacy of fiat currencies and to avoid government regulations and taxes. Anybody who runs a near "all cash" business appreciates the use of greenbacks, as opposed to something like credit card transactions which can be traced. In fact, when I was running my business I would give people two prices. One for cash, and one for "on the books". If I was running a purely internet based company, I would definitely accept bitcoins just for the fact that I wouldn't have to report them.
So, if you are looking to "invest" in bitcoins, I would say, don't invest more than you can afford to lose. It IS a gamble. But, if you are looking to give a "fuck you" to the banks and government, then buy some bitcoins and use them right away to make a purchase. The number of retailers is growing, however very slowly. That's my philosophy.
Whether or not bitcoins will ultimately play a role in the demise of fiat has yet to be determined. However, given the current state of fiat in the world, any little thing could help set it off. Then, you can pull your gold and silver from your vault and actually use it. So, I see something like bitcoin as a bridge from fiat to hard currency.
if that was the case, I'm pretty sure that the IRS will crawl so far up your ass that it will feel like getting humped by a blue whale
there is still bitcoin.de
they have just issued a statement that they are about to close a contract with a bank to be able to offer simultanious trading/paying (no more waiting if/when you will receive your fiat for the bitcoins you have just sold)
have they identified bitcoin addresses the stolen bitcoins went to ?
The COMEX Bullion Purchases and Storage Department, Israel.
I look forward to reading that message on the comex site.
DOH!
Priceless!!!!???? Wait what?
Holding gold & silver when currencies crash: priceless
Holding bitcoinz when the Internet is fragmented & lagged by government attacks: bidless
Meh. They got hacked. As bitcoin evolves, exchanges will need to upgrade and increase their security systems. Most banks are under near constant attacks. The difference is, banks have the resources to put up state of the art security. It's a learning process, and if you are going to put your money in bitcoins, you need to protect yourself. There isn't a government or central bank that is going to bail out any bitcoin exchange. That's the trade-off. Since the average American doesn't know shit about computer security, and most people rely on the government to "protect them", they may ultimately shy away from bitcoin until the operators and merchants can make it "idiot proof".
"Since the average American doesn't know shit about computer security, and most people rely on the government to "protect them", they may ultimately shy away from bitcoin until the operators and merchants can make it "idiot proof"."
Isn't that the same logic that led to the over regulation and destruction of the financial markets?
No "idiot proof" system can ever resist an real idiot!
Just when you think something is idiot proof, someone comes along with a better idiot.
This plunge is just people selling off their paper BitCoins because they realize that it would probably be better to own physical BitCoinage.
It's because of that big BitCoin Mine collapse recently.
The code pathways buried under exabytes of randomized data!
Oh the virtual humanity!
+1 for cleverness and topicality.
Actually you can hold your bitcoins in a paper format and that way it's more physical than just 0's and 1's on your computer.
https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Paper_wallet
Err, the whole thing is missing the most interesting part. Why exactly is their US bank account closing down and why can't they just open a new one?
I agree.
Well, that sucks. I'm not a Bitcoiner, but anything that diminishes my future choices sucks.
Buy physical gold or silver.
Calpers to offer Bitpension option ! LOL
So this means another attack on gold over the weekened?
I heard some douchebag was going on Colbert Report to talk about Bitcoin last night. Time to bring in the real uberidiots and try to prop it up some more. But I have to say this last media blast isn't having the same effect as the last one. The price is just sitting there while the Bitcoin system slowly collapses. Mt. Gox is their new central bank and bitcoin-bribed journalists are all they have going for them.
I saw it and it was atrocious but it was not a pro bitcoin discussion it was a pro Fiat love fest. Of course BTC is only for the machinations of "fanatical anti-government libertarians" and criminals. Anyone who thinks that there should be anything other than gov. decreed money is criminal, terrist, looney, anti-social, and needs to watch more tv and read more NYT.
I went and found the "interview" if you can call it that. He's from NPR (enough said?)
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xz44bk_the-colbert-report-bitcoin-plung...
Here is a quote from the Colbert guest moron:
Moron in response to comment about Stephen liking money: yes but "money that has a very long history of backing...by a government like United States government that has hundreds of years, trillions and trillions of dollars." So basically Zimbabwe notes are still money because it has a government and trillions and trillions of Zimbabwe notes.
It's almost like MDB's other job is shitty Comedy Central shows.
Where can I buy AppleCoins?
http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/giftcards Apple cards more like. Unfortunately, they are pegged tot he dollar.
What you ZHers are missing: exchanges are where you BUY FIAT with your bitcoin.
Remember . . . . for those of you Bitcoin haters and Tylers, you can buy Bitcoins with your PHYZZ or paper counterfeit Federal Reserve Notes, and there is no need whatsoever to use an electronic exchange like Mt. Gox or BitFloor. Then, you can spend your Bitcoins on PHYZZ or Ammo or food or "illicit" goods (or transfer across borders), and there is no need to get approval from the FIAT masters you are so philosophically wedded to.
And, yes, this round-trip transaction can indeed be 100% anonymous, since you do not have to register online with the criminal banksters you are so fond of using to facilitate your financial lives.
Try to keep your normalcy bias in check. Most BTC users are hard money libertarians, many are loyal readers of ZH. There will be growing pains, but crypto currency alternatives are here to stay. Get over it.
BTC confirms the veracity of each bitcoin by listing every transaction it's been in.
Believing that you have some type of anonymity from an organization with the most powerful computers in the world is Pollyannish.
I fully understand that the blockchain records every transaction and they can "theoretically" be traced (inside the bitcoin transaction database) . . . . but if you enter and leave the system anonymously there is no way to pin those bitcoins to you individually.
If anon1 is trading with anon2 half way around the world. How do you prevent being fucked over, since monetary exchanges require trust?
-1
for not answering a legitimate question.
So clearly since all ISPs will track who you are for billing & even wifi connections track your (if not hacked) MAC address, you’re fully tracked. Fully.
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=how+to+change+your+MAC+address
so let's get this straight, for every single btc transaction you'll keep changing your MAC address? Really? Well... good luck with that.
*** to the Sandy Vagina who gave a down-arrow, if you refuse to keep changing your MAC for every transaction they will all be tracked, YOU will be tracked & you'll be found guilty of money-laundering for drug cartels.
Anyone willing to exchange his gold for bitcoins should be put in an institution for the mentally handicapped.
Ya, that’s even dumber than being Corzined, it’s begging to be Corzined while Corzine is busy until he gets to you… then thanking him for the prompt raping.
There are no entry barriers to starting a crypto currency therefore they are worthless.
What is stop someone else creating Citcoins, Ditcoins, Fitcoins, Gitcoins, Zitcoins... Etc etc etc.
There is nothing to stop hundreds or even thousands of similar currencies from being created and all competing for acceptance.
The only reason fiat money has value is because its demanded for tax payments. And tax collectors have a monopoly on violence.
Unless a currency can be used to pay tax somewhere it has no real value. It's only value is because some people think other people will value it.
Tax is the cornerstone of currency. You cannot have tax without currency and you cannot have currency without tax. It's that simple.
In truth once upon a time tax was taken in tangibles and that lead to nasty responses. By using inflation + fraud the work itself turns to value stolen by stealth.
One day soon hopefully we can have an economy that functions on real money with little or none going to TaxBux™ of the day.
And so it begins
To be fair to the BitKiddies -- this exact same thing could happen to my silver.
A very small physics error could suddenly convert it to Cadmium or Palladium, or just cause it to transform itself into pure energy or something.
:-)
Unobtainium.
You wish, Palladium.
http://www.kitco.com/charts/livepalladium.html
Pure Energy
WTF? the bitcoins didn't cease to exist, they just lost value relative to USD, just like silver. You may have lost access if you chose to store your bitcoins with someone else, but the same also applies to silver.
You cannot have a functioning market or society without law and order. DDOS now is equivelent to if someone went on the NYSE back in the '80s with 50 people armed with vuvuzelas, bull horns and air horns and started making a racket right on the trading floor. The problem is, no one has the capability or authority to identify and prosecute cybercriminals.
If they lose all value relative to the USD (think confederate states' currency) do they cease to exist or will you still trade them?
if silver became worth $0.00 USD, would you throw it all away?
Oh dear bitcoiners, sorry to hear about this mind, but since I dont understand it heres something to cheer you up.
A doctor goes up to his patient and says 'I have some good news sir, and some bad news'.
Ok says the patient, 'Give me the bad news',
'I'm sorry to say sir you only have weeks to live',
''Jesus!!' the patient exclaimed, 'What the fuck is the good news?!'
The doctor points to a smart, attractive young nurse with cracking legs and a smashing set of boobs,
Doc says, 'I'm giving that nurse one tonite'.
Cheer up folks, its only money.
It is not even real money. There are much more important things in life. For example a good laugh. So thank you, Inthemix, for cheering me up a bit.
You are more than welcome bearwagon.
I do enjoy a good larf, if you know what I mean.
Stay safe, and stay out of London this weekend, I have a fucking horrible feeling we're next.
This one is even better IMO:
Doctor says to the patient "You have cancer and Altzheimers." Patient says "Thank God I don't have cancer!"
A guy goes hunting, parts some bushes, and finds this absolutely stunning totally nude blonde woman. "I'm game, big boy", she says.
So he shot her.
Since you like jokes.
http://maxkeiser.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/f74850ee03ad4bf194ce709f7a48d19f.gif
I AM SHUTTING BITCOIN MARKET DOWN, BITCHEZ!!
have to say.. the persistent negative bias here re alternatives to establishment schemes.. is dissappointing..
kinda showing your ass, ZH, honestly. most decent sites, that always become trivialized, watered down, co-opted. beginning to wonder about what used to be my favorite site.
pretty wqeak and absurd stretching going on.. to "be right" at any cost.. a serious flag of weakness of reason...
Been here long, kid?
If it's one of your favorite sites, why don't you contribute something worthwile to keep it decent? Or could it be you, who's showing his ass, here on ZeroHedge? ;-)
Not true.
http://bitcoincharts.com/markets/
https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Trade#Currency_exchanges
Nobody could have seen this coming.
<BRRRR...RRRR..rrrr>
Data cyclic error redundancy check
I used to hate those in the DOS days.
Meant just another floppy you could throw in the bin.
Hey, buddy, can you spare a bitcoin?
How they gonna return everyone's funds? No bank account. Why no bank account? No money? Corzine time?
Hmmmmm.. Pandas still there ? - Yep. Philharmonics, Maples, Eagles, Kruggerands and Libertads? - Yep.
Lake City m855 62 gr. ? - yep. 45 ACP? - yep.
5.56 mm gas piston rifles , 12ga shot guns, and .30 caliber sniping....erm, uh...hunting rifles? - Nope.
Boating tragedy. Lost everything.
So sad.
Errr I am still trading at BTC-E, as are Tradehill, BTC24 and Bitstamp. To name a few.
Hey Xenofrog
We are all entitled to tell people our opinion and to give people what we judge to be good advice. It is up to the listener to decide whether it is good or bad and whether to act upon that advice or not.No need to slag someone off just for stating an opinion.
for a place that prides itself on truth.. this site needs to focus on BTC-E
they are the real front line of bitcoin and all other crytpo currencies and has never had any downtime
also, if coinbase gets its act together they will fuel more money into the exchanges (but they are run by a goldmanite from what I hear, so beware)
Other exchanges are doing fine. "Unencrypted passwords" to $250,000 wallets = Amateur City. Professional BTC exchanges are making a fortune. See Vertex in Canada. This is not going way. The Bitcoin Cult makes the Gold Cultists look like casual dilletantes.
Bottom line ya gotta view this as a poker or gambling site... and run exchanges in "gambling friendly" jurisdictions.
You should always have at least four girls names in any passphrase.
Bitcoin is a-bit bust.
That bottle rocket went further faster than I expected. But the pop, was not unexpected at all. I wait with baited breath to see what happens next.
so how's that $1900 gold? and $48 silver doing?
biased much?
Yes, one should look to one's own house before criticizing others.
Right at home next to the new stuff, (and the older stuff).
Will be doing fine around September to November 2013.
I heard Corzine will be opening up a new BitCoin exchange!
Well, Bitfloor was making about $2,000,000/year assuming a 1.5% fee. They will just pop up in a friendly jurisdiction within weeks.
LOL at people with $5,000 in gold laughing at BTC millionaires.
Btc millionaires are the ones hacking the sites, forcing price moves walking them then stealing entire accounts off exchanges. No one else is a btc millionaire. If we felt the same way about gold we’d be working for COMEX ourselves, wouldn’t we?
-1 for you
The gubment shut down this fine co, it was a direct threat to the treasury.
Bitcoin to 1000
I want that list of Bitcoin pumpers.
Then I want to sent them all to Guatamala for life.
When someone combines BitCoin with a physical gold buy-in and a fixed rate against physical gold, then.....I'm in.
Until then, it's a fiat trading club. Farmville. Fun, maybe profitable, but...not for me.
Me thinks, i and i waits for appl to bust out, "ibit".
Copie that, rosta.
Did someone say, 'I told you so' yet? Next on the chopping block, COMEX! I am heavily invested in popcorn. The entertainment is going to endless this summer.
look at the sheeple here trynig to push the meme of bitcoin dead..never think of it again.. lol that's just what you complain happens against everything else and you jump onto the one thing that actually bucks their system
what does that say about you?
Ha! I never tried to proclaim the death of BTC. I don't even give a shit one way or the other. I will tell you though that BTC most assuredly does not buck the system. There is essentially nothing new or innovative about it what-so-ever. On top of that, it trades in fiat currencies, but apparently you choose to ignore that inconvenient fact.
What does that say about you?
By comparison, my virtual portfolio of Galactic Credits and Hutt Cartel coins is looking quite healthy these days.
Why are people wasting time on BitCoin related stuff?
More Hegelian Dialectic
Distraction from reality
I'm not having a problem trading Bitcoins today. The Gox's emloyee showed up a little late this morning but everything is running now.
Just buy PMs and hide them well. I'd put them between the boxspring and mattress and then sleep well at night.
No thief or tax man will ever look under your mattress, right?
Use the goods for boat ballast, leave porn under the mattress for the SEC, IRS, gov’t to try to take, and they’ll walk away satisfied & stop asking questions. That’s all the SEC ever works on anyhow so….
Blipcoin.....
Cyprus public debt to GDP is thought to be 140% after the raid on the only money easily available with no political clout, private deposits.
Japanese public debt to GDP is 227% and that is only central government, never mind, prefectural and municipal debt.
Mt.Gox KK is a Japanese company
If a rather convenient source of foreign derived capital (that is unloved by every central banker) suddenly presents itself for windfall sequestration, could the Bank of Japan resist the Cyprus model?
baby bitcoin currency says to ZH "have i got your attention numpties" damn right it has... Gavin Andreson core developer stated at least 5 major bubbles required to bring this concept to maturity. You are all playing your part brilliantly the volatility is what screamin new borns do...will have loads of knock backs from banks.. the winners will be the banks and governments that first start playing fair with bitcoin. Suppression will be like prohibition.. a failure... I cannot believe the level of stockhome syndrome on zh ..."oooooh big nasty bankers fucked the metals prices hope our kidnappers do the same to bitcoin... getting the lube on so I can take a bit more up the ass"
Bitcoin proof that there are more horses asses than horses
Since when is having russian mobsters and drug dealers sending you thousands of dollars in wire transfers to your personal account so you can send them to a bitcoin wallet in Colombia illegal in the USA? People dont be greedy, all ponzi schemes play on greed. Would you send money to a Russian hacker normally? Why do people "do stupid" out of greed?
Just one fradulant person sending money to an exchange makes all the money in the exchange legally fradulant! You loose. There is no upside to bitcoin accept easy transfer of money and laundering funds.