Russian Central Bank To Ban Websites Offering Crypto-currencies (reuters.com) 45
An anonymous reader shares a report: Russia will block access to websites of exchanges that offer crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin, Russian Central Bank First Deputy Governor Sergei Shvetsov said on Tuesday. He called them "dubious." Russian financial authorities initially treated any sort of money issued by non-state approved institutions as illegal, saying they could be used to launder money. Later the authorities accepted the globally booming market of crypto-currencies but want to either control the turnover or to limit access to the market "We cannot stand apart. We cannot give direct and easy access to such dubious instruments for retail (investors)," Shvetsov said, referring to households.
A bit hypocritical (Score:5, Insightful)
Given how much money laundering takes place in Russia using state-issued currencies such as the US Dollar and Russian Ruble, its a bit rich for Russia to be worried about money laundering in Bitcoin and other crypto currencies.
The real (and unstated reason) is likely to be about control, just like China. They want to stop people being able to move their wealth into assets (cryptocurrencies for example) that they cant monitor, apply taxes to or otherwise control.
Re: (Score:1)
Has a government no right to tax income?
Has a government no right to track its officially issued (and backed) money and try to prevent illegal usages?
A government should be okay with some people creating their own money w/o government approval/oversight, and lots of people using that money to do illegal activities?
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Has a government no right to tax income?
Governments have the right to lay reasonable taxes required to fund public goods agreed by the people.
That doesn't mean they can force you to organize your affairs to maximize their taxation capabilities.
Cryptocurrencies don't prevent taxation, anyways.
Smart move ... (Score:3)
... for the Russians.
It's their playground and they know what works best for them.
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... for the people who own the central banks.
It's their playground and they know what works best for them.
FTFY. The global banking cartel doesn't like competition.
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If you own the central banks, then you've got a dog in the fight.
Otherwise, your opinion (and mine) diesn't matter at all.
I don't live there.
I live in a country that has a batshit crazy pussy grabber as a figurehead who can't go one goddam fucking day without contaminating the news cycle with 7 stories about random crap, so fuck Russia.
Let 'em eat cake.
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... commending them as being intelligence ...
I hate when I post without proofreading, too.
You might want to rethink that (Score:4, Interesting)
The hit for the Russian economy could be devastating when the recipients of the crypto trojan money have to go abroad to collect.
dubious article (Score:1)
this article seems rather dubious itself. it doesn't quote the russian authority figure in saying what the title says, just him saying that bitcoin is dubious and russian households should be protected from the risk. it doesnt contain a quote that says russia is going to block exchanges.
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that's not a quote, that's a derivation. i want a literal quote, a literal translation, of a russian official with the authority to do so literally saying "We are going to block exchanges"
this article does not have that.
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What happened to shirley's other limbs?
I assume shirley is a pet of sorts, or a doll, judging by "it" instead of "she".
Re: Aaaaaaand (Score:3)
It's Ponzi not banzai, and stop calling me Shirley.
From TASS (Score:3)
TASS article [tass.com] says "Russia's Central Bank welcomes imposing any restrictions on operations of external websites that offer cryptocurrency sales, the regulator's First Deputy Chairman Sergey Shvetsov said Tuesday."
"We consider all cryptocurrency derivatives to be a negative development on the Russian market and do not consider it possible to support it, and will even assume measures to restrict potential operations with such instruments made by the regulated part of the Russian market. Meanwhile, we assume efforts aimed at closing external websites that allow Russian citizens to acquire such assets together with the General Prosecutor's Office," he said.
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Consumer protection, crime etc (Score:1)
45% of bitcoin exchanges have thus far failed, taking people's money along with them (wired). Is this a sensible and valid way to keep money?
And let's face it, Bitcoin is broadly used for criminal activities. No stat I could find, but we surely don't buy our daily groceries with bitcoin.
Outrage machine, calm yourself down.
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45% of bitcoin exchanges have thus far failed, taking people's money along with them (wired)
Because retards would store their wallets online, choosing convenience over security.
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That's why bitcoin 101 is DO NOT LEAVE YOUR BITCOIN IN AN EXCHANGE.
You do not have control over your private key in an exchange, bitcoin you have sitting in an exchange is all in just one or several large lump sum bitcoin addresses with IOUs in the exchange's system that they owe you that whenever you grow a brain and move the bitcoin out to a wallet you are in control of. Kinda how the fiat banking system works. If everyone made a run on the banks to pull out all the IOUs you have with the fiat banks, ther
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Exchanges are for exchanging. Not for storing. If you use an exchange for long term storage, you're an idiot.
Bring it on (Score:2, Insightful)
A couple weeks back when China made a big fuss over crypto, BTC went on sale. The temporary price drop from FUD made a great time to buy.
Then everyone took a moment to consider China's regulations (because, seriously, they aren't REALLY going to opt out of something that profitable). Nothing they did altered the fundamental objectives and demand for the coin. It's a global unregulated coin. One country can't do anything more than cause a blip of FUD.
Since then, we've been back to all time highs.
So, bring
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false, the USA is weighty enough to kill crypto currency if it wishes.
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It does appear that blockchain technology will make banks and their governments branches obsolete. Hopefully this is followed by a Charles Eisenstein-style More Beautiful World of personal and mutual responsibility, rather than a Mad Max-style cage match.
huge bitcoin bubble right now, crashing soon (Score:4, Funny)
bitcoin is overvalued on hype, serious economists say crash of the non-currency (electronic poker chips) coming soon
Re: (Score:2)
you're confused, the bubble is real and it will burst.
of course, that's a time when smart people can then buy low.
sorry the intricacies of having market smarts is beyond you