https://www.mtgox.com/

The downside to an unregulated exchange.


The CEO resigns, Mt. Gox claims some several million worth of Bitcoins have 'vanished' (stolen?), and Mt Gox has taken itself offline for now.

A bank failure doesn't mean the collapse of a currency or an economy. It just means people who blindly put their money there are going to be more circumspect in the future.



The Jedi Master

My prediction is that the days of this fad (Bitcoin) are numbered.

It's not proof in and of itself the currency doesn't work or is flawed, but it shows what the market can do. It shows that the market for them is potentially chaotic or not based on known business cycles. It shows that the people involved in this aren't even necessarily businessmen.

It would be the equivalent of the New York Stock Exchange vanishing all of a sudden- it doesn't mean the stocks are inherently bad, but it would mean the marketplace doesn't know its arse from a hole in the ground, which could in the end undermine the currency anyway.

Now, the other exchanges will be picking up slack, that's true. But the inherent volatility and unknown risks have dropped Bitcoin value once more.

I wouldn't be putting money in First National Fly By Night Bank, either.

Without some sort of FDIC equivalent, it's all a crap shoot.



The Jedi Master

No confidence = no value = death of bitcoin (and all other "virtual currencies" which will be tarred by the same brush).

Exactly.

There are no consumer protection mechanisms, so whether a fly by nite scheme or simply a Bitcoin exchange fails, people's money vanish with them. While some may say that doesn't inherently point to the problem of the currency itself, you can certainly argue it's related to it. Not everyone agrees that Bitcoin should be defined as a proper currency, either, some argue that it's actually a commodity or even fits into a different category.

Hey I've selling BitGold for $100 per byte. Who wants some?

Well we can be sure that if Henry Waxman or Chris Dodd have any bitcoins, a bailout is imminent.

LOL!


My guess: NSA stole it, to undermine confidence in bitcoin, which could have eventually grown into a threat to the US Dollar and IRS.

However, this may not be the end: people have not been treating it like a "real currency". It was a speculator's stock, and a tool to transfer and launder "real currency" with less tracking/accountability. And such functions don't disappear just because someone stole a bunch of money.


They will resurect it or something like it, and just factor in the risks of theft.

I find it difficult to believe that the US is implicated here- especially since MT Gox itself doesn't make any claim like that and defer blame, they simply cut themselves off from the world and disappear. They face at least possible civil lawsuits and possible criminal prosecution, disappearing without a trace looks like they know they effed up somehow.

At any rate, it depends on who you are in order to think Bitcoin is actually currency. The Japanese Government (Mt Gox is located in Japan) for example doesn't regard Bitcoin as a form of currency, but rather a collectible, therefore, it doesn't fall within the purview of their protection, which unfortunately means for people who traded through Mt Gox have lost their money without much help from the host government.

Website has been updated as of 2/26, but not much new information added. Terrible PR.

https://www.mtgox.com/

In the end, the choice will come down to this:

You want Bitcoin to be more stable and used in the mainstream? Then it will likely come under the purview of regulation, defeating the purpose of what people wanted in a currency free from regulation, central banking authority and oversight in the first place.

Otherwise it will remain unregulated and who knows what it will do.

Bitcoin or marijuana stocks for investments. Gee, such tough choices. I'll take my chances with CUR - at least they working on slowing down or stopping the progression of ALS using stem cells.

$3.50/share

It was simply the perfect crime, get the population who distrust the banks to invest. And make
your own currency and make a fortune and shove off when the time is right. What recourse do any
investor get other then hire hit men for justice.And that might just happen.

It seems imaginary money is just as prone to devaluation and fraud as the real thing. Who knew?

+!

Well our currency isn't anywhere near as volatile as this. The drinks I bought last Saturday at my favorite bars have been the same price for a couple of years, now if we were going by Bitcoin, that might not be the case each and every day.

It's a caveat emptor situation, but it's very risky- people may be free to buy into it, but that doesn't mean that a lot of people will want to buy into the concept to make it more mainstream.

Nor is it a good idea to buy into it just merely on the basis of a philosophy that wants to stick the middle finger to the system we have now- while by no means perfect, it's probably much more stable and reliable. Even with our current problems, people still confidently take the dollar for payment, whereas, I can't just simply transact with Bitcoin anywhere at anytime.

It is logical that the U.S government or a consortium of governments could do this. Why? No halfway intelligent thief would pull something so blatant which would then reduce the value of the stolen bitcoins to nothing, thus making the crime pointless. Can't have any competition against massively manipulated fiat currencies. ]

i think it's ridiculous that some people think a currency will just vanish

the currency value may fluctuate but it's going to be around as long as there are people to use it.

if people get tired of bitcoin they'll use another clone currency based on the bitcoin idea

cryptocurrency is here forever because it keeps the paws of governments off people's money.