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The author of The End of Money: Counterfeiters, Preachers, Techies, Dreamers – And the Coming of Cashless Society, David Wolman, in a blow to Bitcoin, said that the latest crazy episode won’t mean the end of bitcoin so long as enough online users continue trading the crypto currency, reported USA Today.
The currency, Bitcoin, has struggled to shake off its associations with criminality. Unlike traditional currencies such as dollars, bitcoins are issued and managed without any central authority whatsoever: there is no government, company, or bank in charge of Bitcoin. As such, it is more resistant to wild inflation and corrupt banks. With Bitcoin, you can be your own bank. The decentralized digital money played a large role in powering the now closed online drug marketplace Silk Road. The Vice Chairman of the Bitcoin Foundation, Charlie Shrem, was also arrested on charges of money laundering.
The largest exchange for most of Bitcoin’s existence, MtGox, reported that its chief executive had resigned from the board of a key advocacy group and its website has been disabled, according to USA Today. The statement to its customers reads, “In the event of recent news reports and the potential repercussions on MtGox’s operations and the market, a decision was taken to close all transactions for the time being in order to protect the site and our users. We will be closely monitoring the situation and will react accordingly.” The exchange, MtGox reportedly suffered a theft, a cyber-attack of more than 740,000 bitcoins from the exchange, which froze withdrawals earlier this month and have suspended trading.
MtGox is a Japan-based company, which was originally known as the Magic the Gathering Online Exchange, and began as a site for selling the cards from the popular Magic trading card series game. It began selling bitcoin in 2010, and according to The Guardian, was sold to Mark Karpeles in 2011.
Now, Chief executive of the Bitcoin Foundation, Mark Karpeles, has resigned from the board. Other countries, including China and Russia, have effectively banned the crypto-currency, Bitcoin, according to Fox News.
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There is a new exchange that is being put together by SecondMarket. Up until now, the major Bitcoin exchanges have all allowed anyone from the public to buy and sell virtual currency. The New York Times has reported that SecondMarket’s plan is to create a platform more like the New York Stock Exchange, where only large institutions can join and trade. Mtgox did not reply to requests for comment.
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