Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Bitcoin.

Who has the capital, both financial and political, to withstand this pressure?  Nobody.  If you are going to challenge, even tangentially, the primacy of the prevailing currency of the country in which you reside, expect retaliation by any and all available means with "extreme prejudice".  Challenging the local Lord has been a guaranteed way to lose life and/or property for centuries.

Charlie Shrem, the CEO of Bitcoin exchange company BitInstant and a well-known voice in the virtual currency community, has been charged with scheming to sell and launder $1 million worth of Bitcoin to users of the illegal drug website Silk Road.
The criminal complaint, unsealed today in Manhattan federal court, says that the 24-year-old Shrem conspired with Robert Faiella, a 52-year-old who used the handle "BTCKing." Faiella allegedly obtained Bitcoins from Shrem, then sold them anonymously to Silk Road users at a markup through the site.
The prosecutors say Shrem was aware of the illegal activity and even bought drugs on Silk Road himself. "Truly innovative business models don’t need to resort to old-fashioned law-breaking, and when Bitcoins, like any traditional currency, are laundered and used to fuel criminal activity, law enforcement has no choice but to act," US Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement.

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