Coin News

Venture capitalist Brock Pierce has been elected chairman of the board of directors at the Bitcoin Foundation.

Users of the Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange platform Mt Gox — which suspended trading in 2014 and announced 850,000 bitcoins were "missing" — finally have a chance to try to get some of their money back through Japanese bankruptcy court. 

The platform's bankruptcy trustee, Nobuaki Kobayashi, posted a notice this week instructing Mt Gox account holders on how to file a claim online for their missing bitcoin. Because many account holders don't live in Japan, there's an online claim form that can be accessed with a Mt Gox login and password, but users can also mail in forms (particularly useful if a user doesn't remember her password a year later). 

It seems to be up in the air whether users will be able to get money back in bitcoin, or whether they will have to accept fiat currency. Kobayashi is working with another bitcoin exchange, Kraken, to facilitate the transactions, but they still don't seem to know whether they will be able to give people bitcoins. Here's what the notice says about it:

By becoming a Kraken user, it may be possible for the User to enjoy certain benefits such as the ability to receive bankruptcy distributions in Bitcoin (this matter has not been determined whether distributions in Bitcoin will be possible, as the bankruptcy trustee is still investigating the matter). Therefore, Users who wish to enjoy these potential benefits are requested to consider becoming Kraken users.

Even if users can get some of their balance back in bitcoin, they won't be getting anywhere near all of it back. Coindesk reports it's likely to be less than 20% of the value of the account balances at the time of Mt Gox shutting down.

SEE ALSO: The future of Bitcoin is China

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NOW WATCH: Here's what it takes to be President Obama's right-hand man

Lead Bitcoin developer Gavin Andresen, chief scientist of the Bitcoin Foundation, has announced that he and other Bitcoin Core developers are joining the MIT Digital Currency Initiative. A few days ago Bitcoin Magazine reported that the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab announced the launch of a Digital Currency Initiative, to be directed by former White House senior adviser for mobile and data innovation Brian Forde. The MIT Digital Currency Initiative will integrate researchers across the institute and leading experts at other universities around the world to address some of the most critical challenges to creating a safe, stable and secure digital currency. Previously, MIT Media Lab Director Joi Ito had hinted at the forthcoming initiative. “I’m offering […]

The post Gavin Andresen and Other Core Developers Join MIT’s Digital Currency Initiative appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

Bitcoin price has advanced above the Fib line that has served as the pivot for consolidation during the past week. During the Asian session, price tagged the 4-hour 200-period moving average and looks set to continue the journey north after a corrective price wave has completed. This analysis is provided by xbt.social with a 3 […]

The post Bitcoin Price Avoids Drop Zone – Bullish Moves Again appeared first on CryptoCoinsNews.

It’s been a long time coming, but Mt. Gox customers who lost their funds can finally make claims against the exchange, which filed for bankruptcy in April of 2014. According to the Notice of Commencement of Filing of Bankruptcy Claims issued on April 22, 2015, by bankruptcy trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi, users can register their claims online under certain conditions or by mail. Customers can choose to file the Exchange-Related Bankruptcy Claim online form via the Kraken Bitcoin Exchange system or through the bankruptcy trustee’s own system on the MtGox website. In order to file through Kraken, users are required to be verified Tier 2 account holders. Claimants opting to use either of the two online options must know their usernames […]

The post Formal Claims Process for Customers of Mt. Gox Begins appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

Gavin Andresen of the Bitcoin Foundation says that the use of the digital currency for less-than-legal purchases laid the groundwork for its entering the mainstream

Bitcoin transactions are exempt from value-added-tax (VAT) in Spain, says Spanish tax lawyer Alejandro Gómez, The General Directorate of Taxes, a subsidiary of the Spanish taxing authorities, made the statement in a response to a request from Gómez. According to Gómez, the consultation found that Bitcoin payments were a form of financial service and thus exempt from VAT under the Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006. A translated version of the consultation concludes, “Therefore, we can conclude from the Granton Advertising judgment, that of the concept “other negotiable instruments” under the article 135.1.d) of the Council Directive 2006/112/EC, is closely related to payment instruments, which allows the transfer of money. Consequently, those financial services shall be deemed to be […]

The post Bitcoin is now VAT-Exempt in Spain appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

Benjamin M. Lawsky is a name Bitcoiners know well. He is the architect of New York’s forthcoming BitLicense regulations, which will define how Bitcoin is used and regulated in the Empire State. Given that Wall Street is located in New York City, this regulation will have serious impact on the future of Bitcoin and the […]

The post Lawsky: BitLicense Finalized by End of May appeared first on CryptoCoinsNews.

Bitspark becomes the latest Bitcoin company to integrate Clef’s two-factor authentication to provide secure, “passwordless” logins for their users. Why Is This Important? Earlier this year, the Canadian Bitcoin exchange, Cavitrex, shut down temporarily due to security concerns. The exchange was hacked just weeks prior to the announcement, which caused users’ passwords and two-factor authentication secrets to be compromised. Bitspark is a Hong Kong-based exchange and remittance company that has recently announced a new round of funding. They are the first company in the world to offer end-to-end bitcoin remittances and were recently featured in Goldman Sachs’ report The Future of Finance. Bitspark offers two major services: an exchange and a remittance service. The exchange supports 18 currency pairs and […]

The post Bitspark and Clef Team Up for “Passwordless” Logins appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

The rapidly growing Latin American social network Taringa! will start paying its content-providing members in bitcoin, offering a service that could boost Bitcoin adoption in the region, The Wall Street Journal reports. With its 75 million users mostly located in Spanish-speaking Latin America, Taringa! (the exclamation mark is part of the name) is the second-most-popular social network after Facebook and one of the main destinations in the Latin American Web. The social network, whose slogan is “Collective Intelligence,” is a hybrid of Facebook and Reddit, offering a crowdsourced social bookmarking and commenting platform similar to Reddit. “Today we are launching Taringa! Creators, a revolutionary program that allows Taringa! users to receive a monetary compensation for the valuable content they share […]

The post Social Media Site Taringa! Introduces Bitcoin Rewards in Largest Bitcoin Integration to Date appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

One of the main issues that has slowed the adoption of Bitcoin as a currency and payment system has been the complexity of Bitcoin addresses. The blockchain lacks the human-friendly names normally found with websites and email addresses, which can make sending payments a rather cumbersome process. Netki wants to help people move away from confusing Bitcoin addresses, such as 15eA82FZLogpSb8nkQ5h5qaF3QNEwSeyCm, toward human-readable names such as kyletorpey.tip.me. Any bitcoin user would be able to send bitcoin to anyone else as easily as a Gmail user can send an email to someone using a web browser. How Does it Work? Netki uses a combination of the Namecoin blockchain and Secure DNS (DNSSEC) to take care of name storage and mapping between […]

The post Netki Wants to Replace Bitcoin Addresses with Wallet Names appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

One of the main issues that has slowed the adoption of Bitcoin as a currency and payment system has been the complexity of Bitcoin addresses. The blockchain lacks the human-friendly names normally found with websites and email addresses, which can make sending payments a rather cumbersome process. Netki wants to help people move away from confusing Bitcoin addresses, such as 15eA82FZLogpSb8nkQ5h5qaF3QNEwSeyCm, toward human-readable names such as kyletorpey.tip.me. Any bitcoin user would be able to send bitcoin to anyone else as easily as a Gmail user can send an email to someone using a web browser. How Does it Work? Netki uses a combination of the Namecoin blockchain and Secure DNS (DNSSEC) to take care of name storage and mapping between […]

The post Netki Wants to Replace Bitcoin Addresses with Wallet Names appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

Bitcoin’s consumer appeal and the technical promise of distributed ledgers were hotly debated topics during yesterday's FutureMoney event.

Bicoin Core developers Gavin Andresen, Wladimir van der Laan and Cory Fields have joined the MIT Media Lab’s new Digital Currency Initiative.

 TechCrunch Disrupt NY is two weeks away and I’m excited to announce that I’ll be speaking with Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss on stage on May 6th at 12:20pm. The pair will talk to us about their bitcoin investments, their new exchange, and bitcoin regulation in New York and beyond. Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss are bitcoin bulls and VC investors in bitcoin-based companies. At one… Read More

Chinese bitcoin services provider OKCoin has announced the launch of an ambitious new consumer wallet it dubs the 'Superwallet'.

By Jared Ferrie

YANGON (Reuters) - Japan's Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd (BTMU) has invested $100 million to become the first foreign lender in decades to open a branch in Myanmar on Wednesday, said Chief Executive Officer Go Watanabe.

Crippled by mismanagement during 49 years of military regimes and cut off from much of the world due to Western sanctions, the domestic banking sector is ill-equipped to provide services to local citizens, let alone global companies.

A semi-civilian government took power in 2011 and has initiated sweeping economic reforms. In October, it granted nine foreign banks licenses to operate on a limited basis, its biggest move to date to bring in much-needed foreign capital to a fast-growing economy.

The banks were required to put up minimum paid-in capital of $75 million, but BTMU - a subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc <8306.T> - put in $100 million, Watanabe said.

"We decided that we would show a strong commitment to this country," he told reporters at the branch in Yangon, Myanmar's commercial capital.

He said BTMU will aim to gain 150 accounts from foreign companies with deposits of $100 million within its first year of operating in the country.

Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp - a subsidiary of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc <8316.T> - and Singapore's Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp Ltd said they plan to open branches on Thursday.

Licenses are limited to one branch that can provide loans to foreign companies and only in foreign currency. Licensees are also expected to lend to domestic banks.

Myanmar's Central Bank said on April 2 that it expected six more foreign banks to submit applications for their final licenses in the coming months.

The six are Japan's Mizuho Bank Ltd - a subsidiary of Mizuho Financial Group Inc <8411.T> - and Singapore's United Overseas Bank Ltd , as well as Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd , Bangkok Bank PCL , Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd <601398.SS> <1398.HK> and Malayan Banking Bhd .

(Editing by Christopher Cushing)

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I saw Gavin Andresen throughout the day, mostly while he was giving a presentation. Though I was lucky enough to sit down with Gavin and Mike (Hearn) during lunch. However their ‘tech speak’ went a bit over my head while I quietly observed and ate the delicious dinner that had been prepared by the venue. […]

The post Gavin Andresen: We Have a Bitcoin Soft Fork Going On – ETA of Increased Block Size “6 Months to a Year” appeared first on CryptoCoinsNews.

An online claims process is now live for former Mt Gox customers to formally state their losses, with the possibility of receiving payouts in bitcoin.

Since the close of Mt. Gox in February 2014, many exchanges have risen to fill the void and have claimed to learn from the mistakes of the failed exchange. But have they really? Some believe that insuring deposits and returning the funds, as done when Bitstamp was hacked, is enough. Others feel that some form […]

The post The Vaultoro Glass Book Approach To Bitcoin Exchange Transparency appeared first on CryptoCoinsNews.

 There’s positive news for customers of Mt. Gox, the once industry-leading bitcoin exchange that blew up in spectacular fashion last year, after its creditors began accepting bankruptcy claims. Read More

Maybe you haven’t heard of Taringa! but that’s about to change. Think of Taringa! as a combination of Facebook and Reddit for Latin America. Based in Argentina, Taringa! claims a unique user base of 75 million, second only to Facebook itself in the region among social networks. And they have caught the bitcoin bug, with […]

The post Taringa!: 75 Million User Social Network to pay in Bitcoin appeared first on CryptoCoinsNews.

So, I have spent the last few days at the Kraken headquarters in San Francisco with the legendary Jesse Powell, who I interviewed for the Bitcoin Knowledge Podcast, and the rest of the team and there is some very exciting news. We discussed some of the logistics during the interview but there is even more actionable stuff you can do today to claim your money! Kraken Now Accepts MtGox Creditor Claims Through Website, Offers Free Trades SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. – APRIL 16, 2015 – Kraken, a San Francisco-based Bitcoin exchange, is now accepting MtGox creditor claims and offering up to $1 million in free trade volume per creditor as a bonus for claiming funds through Kraken. The claim and payout service […]

The post Kraken Accepting MtGox Bankruptcy Claims and Giving Free Trade Credit appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

Australia-based Digital World Ventures exchange (DWVx) has launched a peer-to-peer Bitcoin brokerage through a partnership with the white-label currency exchange provider AlphaPoint. The exchange, founded by Ian Davis and James Clarke, hopes to bring a trusted and personal brand, as well as provide a state-of-the-art exchange, to Australia’s Bitcoin scene. “We’re very excited Digital World Ventures selected us as their technology partner”, said Vadim Telyatnikov, CEO of AlphaPoint. “James and Ian are well-known experts in the community. We believe they have the right technical and financial backgrounds to make DWVx a significant player in the region.” Alphapoint has supplied the infrastructure that Bitfinex, MeXBT, FlowBTC, CoinTrader and many other exchanges run on. The software company claims to provide latest exchange […]

The post Australian Bitcoin Exchange DWVx Launches with Banking Support from Westpac appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.