TBI's Daily Bit

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[two-bit-idiot]

April Fool

I'm back, Idiots!   I know you've all been spoiled with high quality guest content over the past week and a half (Jonathan Levin was on fire, Richard Brown is always good), but unfortunately for you, I did not fall off a cliff on the Inca Trail or get devoured by an anaconda in the Amazon.  Aside from some lingering cobwebs that make it hard for me to get back into a writing groove and an unread email inundation, I'm more or less back in one piece from a bucket list trip to Peru. So get excited for more of my usual bitcoin commentary as we kick off this second quarter of 2015. The days are getting longer, the weather's getting warmer, and there is a hell of a lot to look forward to this spring.   Ethereum will finally be launching.  Ditto Factom.  Some Wall Street firms will be making formal entrances into bitcoin and blockchain investments.  The Winklevoss ETF will likely be approved by the SEC (April Fools!)  And the general pace of blockchain innovation and venture capital will likely continue unabated.  I'm not sure whether we will see any killer apps emerge this quarter that finally take bitcoin mainstream, but I do believe this will be a big quarter for bitcoin's platforms. Coinbase just put out a "request for startups" in keeping with its recent shift to focus on providing infrastructure services, BitGo shook up its management team in a move meant to refocus on incorporating multi-sig security into all new developer applications, Xapo pimped out its debit card to a payroll startup (very excited about that one, by the way, BitWage), I've heard a massive update is in the works for Blockchain wallets, and Circle is (probably) working on something cool, too, I'm sure.  They just might never tell us what it is.   In addition, all of these core US infrastructure services will benefit from additional clarity regarding a BitLicense from DFS.  And international infrastructure plays will start finally seeing upticks in volume as more legitimate cross-border payments apps burst through betas and into full launches. Said another way, the bitcoin rich will probably get richer (in fiat, at least), while the BTC price swings in whatever irrational direction it feels like. I'll admit that this prolonged price holding pattern can make it feel like all of us bitcoin Don Quixotes are merely tilting at windmills.  And I'm probably an April fool for remaining optimistic about both blockchain and currency.  But I know it won't take much for the bitcoin floodgates to (re)open. I'm glad to be comfortably long in Q2. Events: "Bitcoin 2015" is happening this fall. Stay tuned. Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Abra, San Francisco (VC-Backed)The 2.0 remittance app that just won the Launch Festival last week is looking for two senior engineering hires. (goabra.com) -iOS Dev Lead - Min 5 years development experience with at least 3 years on iPhone.  Must understand location services, UI programming, and other core iOS servIces.-If you think you're a good match or know someone who is, email [email protected]. Grayscale Investments, New York (a DCG Company) The manager of the Bitcoin Investment trust, the first publicly traded bitcoin investment vehicle, is making two non-engineering hires. (grayscale.co)-Account Manager - Min 3 years of demonstrated sales-driven success within the financial industry, preferably in an investor development or capital raising role; Series 7 and 63 licenses certifications. More info here. -Marketing Manager - Min 4 years of demonstrated success in product marketing, preferably in the financial space; looking for candidates with experience marketing either public or private investment products and/or marketing for asset management businesses. More info here. Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) The stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin is making a number of engineering hires including Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, and UI/UX Designer. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -The full-service bitcoin custodian is also making a number of key hires including data scientists and front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits Inquiry of Silk Road Website Spurred Agents' Illegal Acts, Officials Say http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/31/nyregion/silk-road-case-federal-agents-charges.html On Monday, the government charged two federal agents involved in the undercover investigation of the notorious black-mark site, Silk Road.  Agents Carol Mark Force IV of the DEA and Shaun W. Bridges of the Secret Service, have resigned amid growing scrutiny, and have been been charged with money laundering and wire fraud.  Mr. Force was also charged with conflict of interest and theft of government property.  During the investigating Mr. Force was said to steal a sizable amount of bitcoins for his own possession, while Mr. Bridges diverted more than $800,000 in to his personal account.  Both former agents were members of a Baltimore-based task force that investigated Silk Road, which was separate from the Manhattan-based investigation, which ultimately led to the filing of charges against the website's founder, Ross W. Ulbricht.   Silk Road Agent Gave Bitcoin Tax Advice Prior to Arrest http://www.coindesk.com/silk-road-dea-carl-force-bitcoin-tax-expert/ The duo mentioned above, Shaun Bridges and Carl Mark Force IV, are said to have misused hundreds of thousands of dollars in funds as part of the Baltimore-based investigation to apprehend Dread Pirate Roberts (DPR) or Ross Ulbricht, the leader of Silk Road.  Further evidence now suggests that Force continued to interact with the bitcoin community after the black market was closed.  In 2014, Force, who also has his CPA, opened up to a CoinDesk contributor where he alluded to the fact that he gave free tax guidance to 10 potential bitcoin customers. Force, allegedly, was blocked from bitcoin exchange Bitstamp after his use of Tor was flagged by the company's AML procedures.  Force also allegedly used his illicit haul of bitcoin to pay off his mortgage, write lavish checks and "wire hundreds of thousands of dollars."   Silk Road Revisited: Arrest of Ex-Feds Might Force New trial for Dread Pirate http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-31/silk-road-revisited-arrest-of-ex-feds-might-force-new-trial-for-dread-pirate   Carl Force and Shaun Bridges stand accused of stealing $1 million in illicit funds during their investigation of Silk Road.  Ross Ulbricht's (Dread Pirate Roberts, DPR) lawyers have seized on the development as further proof that he should be entitled to a new trial.  Force, who used the online alias "French Maid," was said to extort $100,000 in Bitcoin from DPR.  Ulbricht also stands accused of attempting to murder Curtis Green, a former Silk Road employee who was arrested in 2013 and agreed to cooperate with law enforcement; however, Force and Bridges were directly involved in that investigation.  More bizarre twists in an already bizarre story.   Overstock Invests $5 Million in Peernova in First Bitcoin Investment http://www.coindesk.com/overstock-venture-capital-investment-bitcoin-peernova/ Overstock, the US retail giant, has invested $5m in Peernova, a blockchain technology specialist, as a part of its second tranche of Series A financing.  Peernova was formed through a merger between cloud mining contract provider CloudHashing and ASIC hardware designer HighBitcoin in early 2014.  Peernova, has raised $19m total in funding, as it prepares to launch its new of projects, focused on data security and finance.   BitGo Names New CEO in Leadership Shake-Up http://www.coindesk.com/bitgo-names-new-ceo/ Today, BitGo, a leading web-based, multi-sig institutional bitcoin wallet, announced that its co-founder Mike Belshe will replace Will O'Brien as acting CEO.  O'Brien will remain a shareholder of the company and strategic advisor, but Belshe will now take over allowing him to take BitGo into its "next phase" of development.   Online Billing Service Invoiced.com Now Accept Bitcoin https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/online-billing-service-invoiced-com-now-accepts-bitcoin/ Invoiced.com, a billing service that allows businesses to create invoices and accept online payments, now accepts bitcoin.  The Austin, Texas-based service provides its billing service for $9 a month after 30 free days and has more than 1,000 customers.   ChangeTip Adds Disqus to Its Growing List of Support Networks http://cointelegraph.com/news/113815/changetip-adds-disqus-to-its-growing-list-of-support-networks ChangeTip has integrated into another social network Disqus, a popular comment service, making Disqus its tenth supported network.  ChangeTip has given rise to trends like Tipping Tuesday, where Bitcoin users introduce non-users to the digital currency by sending them friendly micropayments through ChangeTip.  The Disquis integration will hopefully continue this trend.   Only 2.3% of Americans in Survey Trust Bitcoin Transfers Overseas http://www.coindesk.com/only-2-3-of-americans-in-survey-trust-bitcoin-transfers-overseas/ According to a new survey by the Digital Currency Council, only 2.3% of Americans would trust bitcoin to send funds overseas in an emergency.  While 30.% of the 750 "regular Americans" samples would trust their banks to make international transfers.  And 37.2% of those surveyed said that they would not trust their bank, Western Union, MoneyGram, PayPal, or the Postal Service with their international money transfer options.   Financial Watchdog Rethinks AML Guidance for Banks and Bitcoin http://www.coindesk.com/financial-watchdog-fatf-wants-to-help-bitcoin-businesses-with-risk-based-approach/ The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the anti-money laundering policy maker proposed a risk-based approach that ensures every digital currency business is evaluated on an individual basis.  The FATF's proposal hopes to move the digital currency sector away from the current de-risking model, which will help bitcoin businesses build partnerships with banks.  The FATF proposed their plan at a meeting at Brussels with industry figures last Friday.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Mt. Gox Tax News (and Happy St. Paddy’s Day!)

The Daily Bit costs about $500 / month to run.  Here are the top ten benefactors (ranked by exec commitments) that make this blog possible: 1) Bitnet, 2) Coinbase, 3) Circle, 4) Gyft, 5) Xapo, 6) BitGo, 7) ChangeTip, 8) Elliptic, 9) CoinVault, 10) Blockchain Additional corporate and individual donations are appreciated: 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y Happy St. Paddy's Day! What better way to celebrate the luck of the Irish than with an update on Mt. Gox, the exchange that Irish-goodbye'd with $500mm of customer funds! For those of you who may have been affected by the massive losses, and are still thinking through the potential tax consequences, here’s a helpful update courtesy of Tyson Cross, a tax attorney specializing in the taxation of Bitcoin and other digital currencies.  He assists clients nationwide with tax preparation and tax compliance matters. Check out his site www.bitcointaxsolutions.com if you would like to get in touch with him regarding your bitcoin tax needs. Anyway, here’s the story: Last month, in the Pilgrims Pride decision out of the 5th Circuit court of appeals, a corporate taxpayer appealed (and won) a case concerning the loss deduction it took on some stock it had purchased for $100 million, and which had fallen in value to $20 million.  The realized that if it could abandon the stock and claim an ordinary loss, the tax savings would be greater than the $20 million it could get from selling.  So, the taxpayer sent a letter to the issuing corporation stating that it "irrevocably abandons, relinquishes, and surrenders all of its title and interest in the shares of stock" and took a $100 million loss deduction on its corporate tax return.     However, the IRS disagreed that the loss was "ordinary" and wanted the taxpayer to treat it as a "capital loss," which would not have been fully deductible under the facts of this case.  The Tax Court agreed with the IRS. However, on appeal, the 5th Circuit held for the taxpayer. It reasoned that an abandonment is not a "sale or exchange," so even though the shares of stock were a capital asset, the limitation on capital losses in Section 165(f) did not apply and the loss could therefore be deducted in full as an ordinary loss. (The Court also discussed some other loss limitations that tax nerds might appreciate, but aren't really worth discussing here.) The punchline is that there does not appear to be any reason why this decision wouldn't apply to bitcoins held at Mt. Gox. As long as Gox account holders are willing to formally abandon the bitcoins remaining in their account, their loss deduction would escape the capital loss limitations in Section 165(f) of the tax code, and that would allow them to deduct the loss in full. Of course, there are caveats. For one, it’s important to point out that Pilgrims Pride is binding only in the 5th Circuit, which encompasses Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. For anyone living outside the 5th Circuit, the IRS and US Tax Court are free to reach their own conclusion and may very well disagree with the Pilgrims Pride decision. There is also the issue of whether the loss at MtGox was due to theft, which may force the taxpayer to treat their loss as a "casualty loss" under Section 165(c)(3) and render this entire discussion irrelevant. However, this does give some hope to those who had large losses that would take several lifetimes to recoup under the normal $3,000 limitation on capital losses. Boring, but important.  And potentially lucky! Events: "Bitcoin 2015" is happening this fall. Stay tuned. Jobs, Jobs, Jobs NEW: Abra, San Francisco (VC-Backed)The 2.0 remittance app that just won the Launch Festival last week is looking for two senior engineering hires. (goabra.com) -iOS Dev Lead - Min 5 years development experience with at least 3 years on iPhone.  Must understand location services, UI programming, and other core iOS servIces.-Senior Ruby Developer - Min 8-10 years demonstrable full stack development experience with strong interest in digital currencies, crypto and smart contracts.-If you think you're a good match or know someone who is, email [email protected]. NEW: Grayscale Investments, New York (a DCG Company) The manager of the Bitcoin Investment trust, the first publicly traded bitcoin investment vehicle, is making two non-engineering hires. (grayscale.co)-Account Manager - Min 3 years of demonstrated sales-driven success within the financial industry, preferably in an investor development or capital raising role; Series 7 and 63 licenses certifications. More info here. -Marketing Manager - Min 4 years of demonstrated success in product marketing, preferably in the financial space; looking for candidates with experience marketing either public or private investment products and/or marketing for asset management businesses. More info here. Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) The stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin is making a number of engineering hires including Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, and UI/UX Designer. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -The full-service bitcoin custodian is also making a number of key hires including data scientists and front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits Rakuten Starts Accepting Bitcoin http://global.rakuten.com/corp/news/press/2015/0317_01.html http://www.wsj.com/articles/rakuten-starts-accepting-bitcoin-1426555942 Rakuten Inc., a Japanese e-commerce giant, has started accepting bitcoin for purchases in the U.S, making it one of the first major Japanese companies to accept the virtual currency for payment.  Japan, a country that was home to the Mt. Gox collapse, has decided that the government won't regulate bitcoin and won't assign assign any regulatory bodies to oversee the virtual currency ecosystem.  Rakuten is passionate about bitcoin's potential use and is even invested in Bitnet Technologies, a bitcoin startup in San Francisco.  Rakuten will also be integrating Bitnet's payment system to process the bitcoin transactions. California Considers US$5,000 BitLicense-style Scheme for "Virtual Currency" http://cointelegraph.com/news/113715/california-considers-us5000-bitlicense-style-scheme-for-virtual-currency The state of California is considering legislation that would require all "virtual currency" businesses to acquire a $5,000 license to operate legally.  Bill AB-1326 is very similar to New York's BitLicense with it's purpose being to "prohibit a person from engaging in this state in the business of virtual currency...unless the person is licensed."  The bill also requires a background check, strict money control requirements, and a cash reserve equal to 100% of funds deposited by customers for "transmission."  The proposed bill will more than likely crush bitcoin startups in the state. Coyno Helps Bitcoin Users File Tax Reports, Tracking Bitcoin Transactions http://www.cnbc.com/id/102511141 Coyno, a German-based company, allows bitcoin users to track transactions from all of their wallets in one place, helping users of the cryptocurrency file tax reports.  The service allows users to combine wallets from six providers and display them in one place.  However, the company does not facilitate transactions.  Currently, in the US, bitcoin is seen as an asset and is subject to capital gains tax, while in Germany, it is subject to income tax.  Coyno currently has 200 users and it charges 20 euros a year for a personal account.   Former OKCoin Product Manager Joins Bitfinex http://www.coindesk.com/okcoin-international-manager-competitor-bitfinex/ Zane Tackett, former OKCoin manager of international operations, has announced that he will join Hong Kong-based bitcoin exchange Bitfinex.  Tackett publicly resigned from OKCoin on March 10th citing a "difference of opinion," as well as "unsolved problems."  Tackett will be in charge of community outreach and product development at Bitfinex, which is currently the market leader in USD bitcoin trading.   Factom Announces Launch Date for Token Crowdsale http://www.coindesk.com/factom-launch-date-token-crowdsale/ Factom, a distributed record-keeping network that uses the blockchain, has announced that it will launch a forthcoming crowdsale on March 31st.  The "software sale" will allow consumers to exchange bitcoins for Factom tokens.  Factom is using the Koinify protocol to release the coins, and will only be accepting bitcoin for the sale.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Working in Bitcoin

Thank you to all of those who have contributed to the Daily Bit.  At this point, I am nearly out of my 2014 financial hole.  Now, about those pesky ongoing expenses...  

Between software licenses, accounting & legal, and intern pay, the Daily Bit costs about $500 / month to run.  Your support is essential to keeping the lights on and the keystrokes humming.  I'd like to thank the top benefactors of the Bit in the past year (ranked by exec commitments):

Top Ten: 1) Bitnet, 2) Coinbase, 3) Circle, 4) Gyft, 5) Xapo, 6) BitGo, 7) ChangeTip, 8) Elliptic, 9) CoinVault, 10) Blockchain

Additional corporate and individual donations are appreciated (if you'd like to hit the top 10 list): 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y

*****

Today, I want to talk about America Works bitcoin jobs.  There are tons of opportunities around the industry these days, especially with venture capital investments at record highs almost every single quarter, and interest in blockchain applications accelerating now that bitcoin's core infrastructure is more reliable and robust.  

As I alluded to last week, I will be posting jobs for *funded* startups below-the-fold from now on.  In general, I’ll keep each job post up for a month.  You will either need to pay for each monthly posting ($250/month for executive “above-the-fold" roles or $100/month for junior roles) or remind me you want the posting refreshed (if you’re a DCG company).

Let’s kickstart this refresh with a few killer job opportunities...

Abra The 2.0 remittance app that just won the Launch Festival last week is looking for two senior engineering hires. (goabra.com) -iOS Dev Lead - Min 5 years development experience with at least 3 years on iPhone.  Must understand location services, UI programming, and other core iOS servIces. -Senior Ruby Developer - Min 8-10 years demonstrable full stack development experience with strong interest in digital currencies, crypto and smart contracts. -If you think you're a good match or know someone who is, email [email protected].

Grayscale Investments The manager of the Bitcoin Investment trust, the first publicly traded bitcoin investment vehicle, is making two non-engineering hires. (grayscale.co) -Account Manager - Min 3 years of demonstrated sales-driven success within the financial industry, preferably in an investor development or capital raising role; Series 7 and 63 licenses certifications. More info here. -Marketing Manager - Min 4 years of demonstrated success in product marketing, preferably in the financial space; looking for candidates with experience marketing either public or private investment products and/or marketing for asset management businesses. More info here.

More opportunities tomorrow and ongoing below the fold...

Events: "Bitcoin 2015" is happening this fall.  Stay tuned.

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected].

Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com

Today's Tid Bits

GuestLogix Announces Acceptance of Bitcoin Currency as a Form of Payment on its Retail Platform http://www.marketwatch.com/story/guestlogix-announces-acceptance-of-bitcoin-currency-as-a-form-of-payment-on-its-retail-platform-2015-03-16-7173157 GuestLogix, a global leader in comprehensive merchandising, payment and business intelligence technology delivered to the passenger travel industry both onboard and off-board, has announced that it was started implementing crypto-currency wallet components to its platform enabling the acceptance of bitcoin and other digital currencies on its widely users retail platform.  It's platform currently supports 80 travel operators and handles payments across 114 countries.  This move will allow airlines to be able to accept payments in virtual currencies in a secure, reliable manner at access points such as in airport kiosks as well as in-flight entertainment systems onboard aircraft.

Local Australian Government Planning to Sell $7.1m of Seized Bitcoin http://www.coindesk.com/local-australian-government-planning-to-sell-7-1m-of-seized-bitcoin/ The Victorian government, an local Australian government, is planning on selling 24,500 bitcoins that were confiscated from Richard Pollard, who was sentenced to 11 years in jail after pleading guilty to commercial trafficking last October.  The Victorian government is currently accessing options for selling the seized coins.  The sale is expected to take place during the coming months.  

Chainalysis CEO Denies 'Sybil Attack' on Bitcoin's Network http://www.coindesk.com/chainalysis-ceo-denies-launching-sybil-attack-on-bitcoin-network/ Chainalysis, a compliance startup, was forced to defend itself following allegations that its surveillance tactics had disrupted services and threatened the privacy of bitcoin users.  The Swiss-based company created 250 'false' bitcoin nodes to harvest information about transactions, but the firm now claims these nodes have been shut down.  The incident was described as a, "unintended partial Sybil attack" that did not harm the bitcoin network.  False nodes can make it harder for bitcoin's 6,500 publicly accessible full nodes to sync making it more difficult to find blocks and transmit transaction data.  

Sean's Outposts Serves its 150,000th Crypto-Funded Meal http://cointelegraph.com/news/113699/seans-outpost-feeds-its-150000th-meal-to-the-homeless Sean's Output, a crypto-funded charity, has fed its 150,000th meal to the homeless using Bitcoin. The Florida-based charity is the largest provider of meals to the homeless in Escambia County, Florida.  According to Jason King, founder of Sean's Outpost, their charity has raised $240,000 in 20 months, saving $8400 by using bitcoin instead of credit cards.  King will also be speaking at the Texas Bitcoin Conference on distributed and decentralized non-profits.  

'Satoshi Was Not a Cryptographer,' says Gavin Andresen http://cointelegraph.com/news/113710/satoshi-was-not-a-cryptographer-says-gavin-andresen Gavin Andresen, the lead developer of Bitcoin, who personally knows Satoshi Nakamoto (the anonymous founder of Bitcoin), has said that "Satoshi is often called a cryptographer...But I don't think he was."  Andresen spoke at DevCore Boston, discussing the early days of Bitcoin and shared opinions about Satoshi Nakamoto.  Andresen also spoke in support of a large block size, discussed the difference between transaction validity and transaction meaning, and argued that Bitcoin uses very little cryptography.  

Secure Messaging App Wiper Adds Bitcoin Support, Gets Yanked in China http://techcrunch.com/2015/03/15/secure-messaging-app-wiper-adds-bitcoin-support-gets-yanked-in-china/ Wiper, a chat application designed to provide users with control over their sent and received messages, has recently rolled out a tool that allows individuals to send bitcoin to others inside the app's main chat interface.  This move has gotten Wiper removed from Apple's iOS App Store in China, which was a noticeable move since around 80% of bitcoin transactions at current tip are associated with the Chinese yuan.  

Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Weekend Reading: 30 Blogs from Bitcoin Women

A special Sunday post to wrap up Bitcoin Women's Week... I have thoroughly enjoyed the product of the Digital Currency Council’s week-long focus on women in bitcoin.  Mostly because they did more than pay lip service to the need for more active involvement in the industry by women; they actually dedicated their blog and platform to women who wanted to voice their unique perspectives.  Cover to cover, the content this produced was excellent. But it's a lot to comb through, so I wanted to summarize all of these posts with the must reads up top... (*Must Read*) Fereshteh Forough (founder of Code to Inspire) wrote about her experience as an Afghan refuge who grew up in Iran, and the power that technology and digital currencies have to empower women in even the most oppressive regions of the world.   http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/empowering-afghan-women-with-coding-and-bitcoin-education/ (*Must Read*) Primavera De Filippi (a research fellow at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society) wrote about the potential for blockchain technology and smart contracts to support and facilitate better community governance. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/how-the-blockchain-may-support-and-facilitate-community-governance/ (*Must Read*) Liz Prehn (the firm administrator at tax law firm Moskowitz LLP) wrote about one of my favorite topics, the potential for digital currencies to solve the marijuana dispensary industry’s chronic (pun intended) banking problems. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/virtual-currency-is-it-an-answer-to-dispensary-banking-problems/ (*Must Read*) Margaret Cullum (an attorney at Mills & Williams LLP) wrote about digital currencies’ potential and viability as a tool in money laundering schemes, and what the industry can do to weed out bad actors and stay on the right side of regulators. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/no-more-suitcases-full-of-cash-money-laundering-in-the-age-of-digital-currencies/ (*Must Read*) Elsa Broeker (an attorney at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP*) wrote about California’s virtual currency regulation climate.  Ben Lawsky and the Bitlicense get all the press, but the CA bitcoin regulations are arguably more important. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/california-virtual-currency-legislation/ *Great post, but seriously: screw firms with four names. Get creative / less narcissistic. (*Must Read*) Tanaya Macheel (contributor for CoinDesk) wrote why now is a good time for the Bitcoin news media to "become more challenging, more critical, less promotional, and less like a campaign." http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/nows-a-good-time-for-the-bitcoin-news-media-to-become-more-challenging-more-critical-less-promotional-less-like-a-campaign/ Elizabeth Ploshay (Bitcoin Foundation board member and NPO outreach for BitPay) wrote about bitcoin’s potential to enfranchise women across the globe in regions where they are restricted from basic financial services and treated as second-class citizens. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/bitcoin-a-social-political-and-economic-game-changer-for-women-globally/ Shannon Steele (a student in the University of Nicosia’s first bitcoin MOOC) wrote about her experience learning about bitcoin and how she thinks about future involvement in the financial services and blockchain industry. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/uncategorized/what-lies-ahead-for-financial-services/ Pamela Morgan (an attorney and board member at the College Cryptocurrency Network) wrote about the potential for bitcoin’s multi-sig technology to increase economic inclusion of women participating in cooperative organizations. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/empowering-women-in-co-ops-finding-financial-freedom-and-control-in-bitcoins-multi-signature-technology/ Hannah Kim (the co-founder of Mexican wallet service Volabit) wrote about bitcoin’s potential to disrupt mobile banking services at the other end of one of the world’s largest remittance corridors (and what her company is doing to make that happen).   http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/uncategorized/unleashing-the-power-of-bitcoin-mobile-payments/ Hannah Rosenberg (CEO of Velas Commerce, which offers bitcoin e-commerce solutions to global SMEs) wrote about how bitcoin can eliminate the barriers to global e-commerce and usher in an era of truly global “Innovative E-Commerce". http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/bitcoin-enables-innovative-e-commerce-markets/ Sarah Hody (in-house legal counsel at Coinbase) wrote about her personal journey through law and financial services, and why she transitioned full-time to a role advocating for digital currency. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/opportunity-for-all-in-bitcoin/ Patty Rangel (a producer at METAVERSEproductions) wrote about her experience in the virtual world gaming (i.e. SecondLife & WoW) industry and opportunities that are present thanks to the intersection of the virtual reality and digital currency worlds. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/the-intersection-of-bitcoin-and-virtual-worlds/ Daliah Saper (entrepreneurial attorney who founded her own niche legal practice at the age of 24) writes about the importance of finding your niche and how she became a bitcoin enthusiast. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/building-a-legal-practice-on-the-cutting-edge/ Christine Dahl (an attorney and founder of BitCounsel) wrote about the potential for digital currencies to create communities that reduce human suffering, not just for women, but for their men and children, too. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/legal/creating-a-bitcoin-ecosystem-that-reduces-human-suffering/ Danetha Doe (host of #FutureofMoney and co-president of the "Future of Accounting" community) wrote about how bitcoin is sparking entrepreneurship in Africa, a continent which has already taken the lead in mobile money. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/accounting/digital-currency-sparking-entrepreneurship-in-africa/ Trace Freese (an online strategist and founder of Strong Estate LLC) wrote an entertaining post outlining the practical benefits of bitcoin and reasons why women should be excited about digital currencies. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/finance/heres-the-deal-with-bitcoin-ladies/ Hannah Konitshek (the founder of LawGives where she focused on the intersection of Law, Entrepreneurship and technology) wrote candidly about the abysmal percentage of women in bitcoin leadership positions: just 16 of 267 executives at the 53 companies she reviewed - less than half of the already abysmal tech industry’s average of 14%. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/are-women-participating-in-the-digital-currency-revolution/ Inggrid Yonata (writing for Digital Currency Council and an entrepreneur and journalist) wrote about some of the common misconceptions of bitcoin. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/common-misconceptions-about-bitcoin/ Melissa Donohue (founder of financial literacy firm Financial Nutrition) wrote about how bitcoin immersion could help girls’ improve their financial literacy and spark interest in technology and “STEM” fields. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/girls-financial-literacy-and-bitcoin/ Jinyoung Englund (Director of Communications at the Bitcoin Foundation) wrote about the need to attract more women in bitcoin, and points out that the Foundation itself is majority run by women - even though just one of its seven board members is a woman. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/women-in-bitcoin-empowered-to-do-it-all/ HaeKyung Chung (Chief Marketing Officer at Coinplug, Inc. in Seoul) wrote about the importance of getting women to try new technologies, and why bitcoin might be the best place for young women to start. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/try-new-technologies-starting-with-bitcoin/ Helen Disney (Director of Outreach for the Bitcoin Foundation) wrote about a similar theme as her colleague Jinyoung; what if more women worked in fintech more broadly?  But she addresses this question from an English perspective. http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/what-if-the-best-female-talent-was-attracted-to-work-in-fintech/ Stephanie Wargo (VP of Marketing at BitPay) wrote about the need to market bitcoin to the rest of the world.  In other words, how can we break out from the bitcoin echo chamber and recruit more believers to the bitcoin cause? http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/why-we-need-to-market-bitcoin-to-the-rest-of-the-world/ Amor Sexton (Australia’s first digital currency-focused lawyer) wrote about how bitcoin can help millions of women around the globe in the remittance market in particular, where they send 50% of annual remittances and a greater proportion of their pay.   http://www.digitalcurrencycouncil.com/professional/how-bitcoin-can-help-millions-of-women-around-the-world/ For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events "Bitcoin 2015" - It's happening this fall. Stay tuned. Texas Bitcoin Conference - Austin (Mar. 27-29) The 2015 Texas Bitcoin Conference will highlight how Bitcoin 2.0 and the blockchain will impacttomorrow’s ultra-connected and decentralized world of business and society—“changing the way we do everything.”  The event will feature a thought-provoking keynote delivered by celebrated economist, technologist and author George Gilder, who will discuss themes from his upcoming book, Bitcoin & Gold: Information Theory of Money.  Other panelists include Steven Stockman, former U.S. Representative for Texas’s ninth congressional district, Sumabala P. Nair, IBM business analytics and strategy architect and a leading member of IBM’s Project ADEPT, as well as sponsors such as Rivetz, Factom, GoCoin, Cryptocurrency Partners, The Dapps Fund, Lighthouse Partners, PeerTracks, Tally Capital, Transform Public Relations, and the Digital Currency Council.  Conference registration is $150 for a full pass. Discounts for students are available. Hackathon registration is free. Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - New York (Apr. 27-29) Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. Join Inside Bitcoins when it returns to New York for the third year. Speakers include Barry Silbert, Marc Hochstein, Brian Kelly, Dan Morehead, Perianne Boring, Gil Luria, and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% OFF any pass with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits IBM Looking at Adopting Bitcoin Technology for Major Currencies http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/12/us-bitcoin-ibm-idUSKBN0M82KB20150312 IBM is considering adopting the blockchain to create a digital cash and payment system for major currencies.  IBM is hoping to make it easier for people to transfer cash or make payments instantaneously using technology, not a bank or any clearing partner.  According to a trusted source, the company has been in informal discussion about a blockchain-tied cash system with a number of central banks, including the Fed.  The project is still in it's infancy.   Bitcoin Coder Garzik Signs Deal to Deploy 'BitSats' In Space http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2015/03/12/bitbeat-bitcoin-coder-garzik-signs-deal-to-deploy-bitsats-in-space/ Jeff Garzik, a bitcoin core developer, has a plan to put mini satellites into orbit to provide secure, remote backup for Bitcoin's growing store of data.  Dunvegan Space Systems, Garzik's company, announced yesterday that it has partnered with Deep Space Industries Inc., to build the first 24-unit constellation of "BitSats."  BitSats will keep a complete record of the blockchain ledger, and will serve as a data storage solution and communication services tool.  Eventually Garzik wants to sell BitSats to customers, $1m for one BitSat, $19 million for a full 24-unit constellation.   Charlie Shrem is Going to Prison, Reflections from Bitcoins' First Felon http://charlieshrem.com/so-im-going-to-prison/ On March 30th, Charlie Shrem will be self surrendering to Lewisburg Federal Prison Camp in Pennsylvania and will serve two years for aiding and abetting the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.  Shrem has been on house arrest for the past 14 months and has remained fairly active in the bitcoin community.  Shrem admits in his post, "I did the crime, and I will do the time."   Wedbush, TeraExchange Execs Form Wall Street Bitcoin Advocacy Group http://www.coindesk.com/wedbush-teraexchange-execs-form-wall-street-bitcoin-advocacy-group/ The Wall Street Bitcoin Alliance (WSBA) has launched with the hopes of promoting Bitcoin and blockchain technology adoption in the financial markets.  The group is hoping to lobby government agencies and regulators on topics including regulation, innovation and the way digital currencies are taxed. The WSBA is offering full membership to finance firms and associate membership for bitcoin companies.   Intuit Expands Bitcoin Payment Service to Australia http://www.coindesk.com/intuit-bitcoin-payment-australia/ Intuit, financial management specialist, is expanding its PayByCoin product to Australia.  PayByCoin integrates bitcoin into the company's Intuit Quickbooks service, enabling merchant adoption.  The service uses BitPay's platform API to operate and is a product of Intuit Labs.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Jobs & Housekeeping

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Bit.  I was ~$2,700 in the hole last week, and I'm now down to only $1,521.  When I get down to zero, I'll delete this banner. I've cut down the losses by 1/3; now I just need some corporate love... 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y Some housekeeping items for tonight's Bit... First, a quick shoutout and thanks to friends at Elliptic who sent a nice donation today to help defray the costs of doing business.  (They've got some job listings below, too.)  I've decided that maybe the best way to wrap up this fundraising campaign is to do a "donation canary."  By thanking the most generous corporations (companies or execs have tipped >$100 in the past year), you'll deduce who's being cheap or not reading at all, and can either nudge those folks to chip in or get them to read and engage.  Win, win! In that case, I'd also like to thank executives at ChangeTip, Coinbase, Circle, Xapo, BitGo and Gyft for their generous support.  Always happy to publicly thank the industry's benefactors... Second, thanks to all who reached out to me / Andrew regarding his summer internships.  Both of us appreciate it.  I know AT is stoked for his summer position (how many summer interns get recruited vs. the other way around?), and I'm thrilled because this demonstrates one of the big perks I've advertised for the next rising junior who wants to take over the reins as Tid Bit editor: legitimately improved job prospects (provided he/she does just as well as AT - no small feat).  Keep this in mind young'ns: AT is helping me hire his replacement in April... Third, and speaking of jobs, I hope that the jobs section below proves valuable to companies that choose to leverage it.  From now on, I'll be reserving that space for companies that have raised a seed round of less than $10mm.  On the one hand, I only want to promote startups that can actually recruit and pay new employees.  On the other, everyone knows that Coinbase and Circle are hiring...I don't need to post a link to their jobs pages.  If you fit that description, then fire away with job postings!  Note: I'll make exceptions for companies who have dire needs in a particular area (e.g. iOS developer) or are looking to fill a position on the senior management team.   If DCG is an investor in your company, no charge for the post.  All others, prepare to make me an offer I can't refuse... Finally, I will be on vacation the week of March 23rd.  I'll be on the Inca Trail and in the middle of the Peruvian Amazon with my wife for the whole week, so don't expect a response from me no matter how urgent, because I am going 100% off the grid.   Good news is that Jonathan Levin, co-founder of Coinometrics, is filling in for me and has some awesome posts lined up.  He's got an excellent blog himself and you can follow him on twitter at @jony_levin.  Andrew Thomas will be managing the campaigns as usual, and ensuring that Jony doesn't attempt a hostile takeover of the Bit once people decide they like him better. Events "Bitcoin 2015" - It's happening this fall. Texas Bitcoin Conference - Austin (Mar. 27-29) The 2015 Texas Bitcoin Conference will highlight how Bitcoin 2.0 and the blockchain will impact tomorrow’s ultra-connected and decentralized world of business and society—“changing the way we do everything.”  The event will feature a thought-provoking keynote delivered by celebrated economist, technologist and author George Gilder, who will discuss themes from his upcoming book, Bitcoin & Gold: Information Theory of Money.  Other panelists include Steven Stockman, former U.S. Representative for Texas’s ninth congressional district, Sumabala P. Nair, IBM business analytics and strategy architect and a leading member of IBM’s Project ADEPT, as well as sponsors such as Rivetz, Factom, GoCoin, Cryptocurrency Partners, The Dapps Fund, Lighthouse Partners, PeerTracks, Tally Capital, Transform Public Relations, and the Digital Currency Council.  Conference registration is $150 for a full pass. Discounts for students are available. Hackathon registration is free. Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - New York (Apr. 27-29) Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. Join Inside Bitcoins when it returns to New York for the third year. Speakers include Barry Silbert, Marc Hochstein, Brian Kelly, Dan Morehead, Perianne Boring, Gil Luria, and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% OFF any pass with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits Chinese Yuan Dominates 80% of Bitcoin Trades http://www.cnbc.com/id/102497909 According to data from Goldman Sachs, about 80% of bitcoin volume is now driven by the Chinese yuan with the second most used currency being the U.S. dollar, followed by the euro. Looking at trading volume, China's yuan also accounted for 77% of total market share, with the dollar taking 19%.  In December the People's Bank of China banned financial institutions from bitcoin trading, but China's high trading activity has yet to come down.  Most are optimistic that China will soon loosen its regulation around bitcoin.   Goldman Sachs Report Says Bitcoin Could Shape 'Future of Finance' http://www.coindesk.com/goldman-sachs-report-says-bitcoin-could-shape-future-of-finance/ According to a new report from Goldman Sachs' equity research analysts, Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are part of a technology "megatrend" that could change the fundamental mechanics of transactions.  The report, published yesterday, is titled The Future of Finance: Redefining the Way We Pay in the Next Decade.  The report highlighted that bitcoin's major impact will be enabling the transfer of assets without a central clearing authority.  Bitcoin will also play a major role in global remittance services, and is gaining much more merchant adoption, according to the report.   T-Mobile Now Accepts Bitcoin in Poland http://venturebeat.com/2015/03/11/t-mobile-now-accepts-bitcoin-in-poland/ In late February, T-Mobile announced a payment trial that would allow customers to prepay for mobile minutes with Bitcoin.  Today, T-Mobile now lets customers buy phone credits with bitcoin in Poland.  T-Mobile has partnered with InPay, a Warsaw-based bitcoin company, to process the transactions.  Customers who add minutes with bitcoin will receive 20% more calling credits as incentive.   Dating Network Badoo Seeking to Expand Bitcoin Payments Globally http://www.coindesk.com/social-dating-badoo-bitcoin-payments/ Badoo, a dating-focused social networking site, is now allowing its users to pay for premium features using bitcoin in more than 20 countries.  The site has more than 200 million users.  A partnership with Smart2Pay, a Dutch online payment provider, enabled Badoo's bitcoin adoption. Badoo offers more than 30 payment methods to its global customer base, processing transactions in 84 currencies.   150 More MyCoin Bitcoin Scheme Victims Step Forward http://www.coindesk.com/150-mycoin-bitcoin-scheme-victims/ An additional 150 victims of MyCoin's fraudulent bitcoin exchange collapse have forward to police accompanied by Democratic Party legislator James To Kun-sun.  One victim was said to have lost $HK80,000 ($103,000).  Five individuals were arrested last week in connection with MyCoin's collapse, but have since been released on bail.  Latest estimates have the exchange, which has appeared to operate more as a ponzi scheme, to have lost HK$150m ($19.3m).   Bter to Return 'Hacked' Funds Following Security Partnership http://www.coindesk.com/bter-to-return-hacked-funds-following-security-partnership/ Bter, a 'hacked' altcoin exchange, has outlined a plan to payback users after making a deal with Jua.com, a security firm.  The Chinese platforms reported that hackers stole 7,170 bitcoins (around $2.1m) on February 14th by accessing its cold wallet storage system.  If confirmed, this would be the second largest attack of the year.  Bter plans to repay its customers in batches using future profits and a 1,000 BTC interest-free loan from Jua.com.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Random Notes

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Bit.  I was ~$2,700 in the hole last week, and I'm now down to only $1,525.  When I get down to zero, I'll delete this banner. I've cut down the losses by 1/3; now I just need some corporate love... 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y Monster news cycle for bitcoin this week. Some comments / reactions. 1) 21e6 raises a record round of funding for a bitcoin company; $116mm for whatever it is that they actually do.  (I kid...I've got a pretty good idea what they are up to, but confidentiality, yada, yada.)  If you look at their investor list, you can probably triangulate.  The news about the news there is that another serious bitcoin media company nearly broke the story over the WSJ.  Would have been a great get, and I'm sure they are going to scoop a bunch of other big stories in the future. (And no, I'm not referring to myself in the abstract. No scoops here.) 2) Jamie Dimon might dismiss bitcoin, but I'm counting at least three former JPMorgan managing directors who have switched to bitcoin executive roles in the past six months.  The big news, of course, was that Blythe Masters, the original creator of the infamous credit default swap (aka the financial product that ruined our global economy for a few years) joined stealthy Chicago bitcoin startup, Digital Asset Holdings, as the CEO.  Masters was one of the top dogs at JPM (even her name sounds powerful), and her migration into the space puts her up around the top of my already obsolete "most powerful women execs in bitcoin" list.   Masters joins Paul Camp (CFO at Circle) and one of our entrepreneurs-in-residence (still in stealth) as JPMorgan executive alumni who have broken ranks with Dimon on bitcoin.   3) Erik Voorhees revealed himself as the CEO of altcoin exchange, ShapeShift. [We're investors.]  I loved everything about this story.  Love that the company is outstanding (easy, fast decentralized alt-coin trading), growing like crazy even though most alt-coin volumes are way down along with bitcoin, and well positioned from a regulatory (don't touch fiat) and product (would work with any kind of digital asset transfer in the future) perspective.  Love that its CEO, who is one of the most popular guys in the industry, says, "Actually, I don't want people to know this is me at first. Let's see if the product is good enough with Beorn as the CEO" and it doesn't backfire!  Oh, and love the fact that Erik punked everyone with the Beorn Gonthier LOTR shapeshifter pseudonym. Well played across the board. 4) Probably the subject for a standalone post, but for those playing the home game: the euro is down about 35% since last May vs. the dollar.  The Ruble is down 50%+ and the Yen is down 20%.  There is very likely going to be a point in early April when we can say that bitcoin has "outperformed the Euro" over the past twelve months even if bitcoin hovers around $300.  That's incredible to me given how sideways the price has been, and goes to show how real bitcoin's solution is to the global currency wars that are ramping up. El fin. For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events Texas Bitcoin Conference - Austin (Mar. 27-29) The 2015 Texas Bitcoin Conference will highlight how Bitcoin 2.0 and the blockchain will impact tomorrow’s ultra-connected and decentralized world of business and society—“changing the way we do everything.”  The event will feature a thought-provoking keynote delivered by celebrated economist, technologist and author George Gilder, who will discuss themes from his upcoming book, Bitcoin & Gold: Information Theory of Money.  Other panelists include Steven Stockman, former U.S. Representative for Texas’s ninth congressional district, Sumabala P. Nair, IBM business analytics and strategy architect and a leading member of IBM’s Project ADEPT, as well as sponsors such as Rivetz, Factom, GoCoin, Cryptocurrency Partners, The Dapps Fund, Lighthouse Partners, PeerTracks, Tally Capital, Transform Public Relations, and the Digital Currency Council.  Conference registration is $150 for a full pass. Discounts for students are available. Hackathon registration is free. Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - New York (Apr. 27-29) Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. Join Inside Bitcoins when it returns to New York for the third year. Speakers include Barry Silbert, Marc Hochstein, Brian Kelly, Dan Morehead, Perianne Boring, Gil Luria, and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% OFF any pass with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits Former JPMorgan Executive Blythe Masters Joins Bitcoin-Related Start-Up http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/12/business/dealbook/former-jpmorgan-executive-blythe-masters-joins-bitcoin-related-start-up.html Blythe Masters, a prominent former executive at JPMorgan Chase, has left JPMorgan's commodities unit and is joining Digital Assets Holdings, a Bitcoin-related start-up that is looking to use Bitcoin's underlying technology to streamline financial transactions.  Ms. Masters, a star at JPMogran, has already had talks with the Federal Reserve, New York State's Department of Financial Services and the Bank of England as Digital Assets Holdings works to navigate bitcoin's pending regulatory environment.   BitPay Inks Partnership Deal to "Decentralize 3D Printing" http://cointelegraph.com/news/113669/bitpays-inks-partnership-deal-to-decentralize-3d-printing 3D Hubs, the "AirBnB of 3D printers," has partnered with BitPay, the popular Bitcoin payment processor.  The two are working together on 3D Hub's global network of 3D printers to decentralize their printing network.  3D Labs will now, "make it possible for everyone to manufacture and purchase products without traditional centralized institutions in between."   Bitcoin Exchange itBit Revealed as US Marshals Auction Winner http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-exchange-itbit-us-marshals-auction-win/ itBit, a New York-based bitcoin exchange, has revealed that it was one of the three participants in the latest US Marshals Service (USMS) bitcoin auction.  itBit secured 3,000 BTC ($888,000), which was the smallest total accumulated among the three winners.  The other two bidders, whom are not yet public at this time, won 27,000 BTC ($7.9m) and 20,000 BTC ($5.9m) during the auction.   ShapeShift Raises £525k, Reveals Erik Voorhees as Creator http://www.coindesk.com/shapeshift-raises-525k-reveals-erik-voorhees-as-creator/ ShapeShift, the instant bitcoin and altcoin exchange, has received £525,000 in seed funding from Barry Silbert and Roger Ver.  The Swiss-based platform allows users to swap between 25 digital currencies and tokens without user accounts or registration.  Erik Voorhes has also come forward as ShapeShift's creator and CEO, after operating under the alias, Beorn Gonthier.  According to Voorhees, the funding will go towards improving the exchange's engine as well as marketing and legal work.   Coinbase Joins Facebook and Uber in Internet Lobbying Group http://www.coindesk.com/coinbase-joins-airbnb-facebook-and-uber-in-internet-lobbying-group/ Coinbase has joined the Internet Association (IA), a Washington D.C. based public policy group that lobbies regulators on Internet freedom and innovation.  Amazon, eBay, Facebook and Google are also members of the IA.  The group was founded in 2012, and Coinbase in the first bitcoin company to join the IA.   Secretive Bitcoin Startup 21 Reveals Record Funds, Hints at Mass Consumer Play http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/03/10/secretive-bitcoin-startup-21-reveals-record-funds-hints-at-mass-consumer-play/ A stealth bitcoin startup, 21 Inc, has been quietly convinced some of the biggest names in venture capital for the past year and a half to invest $116 million in firm, which hopes to turn the technology behind Bitcoin into a mass-marketed phenomenon.  21 has raised the most ever by a startup in the digital-currency sector.  However, the precise nature of the company has not yet been revealed.  The lead investors in the startup include Andreessen Horowitz, RRE Ventures, Yuan Capital, and Qualcomm Inc.'s venture-capital unit.   Reddit Adds Bitcoin Payments to Merchandise Store http://www.coindesk.com/reddit-adds-bitcoin-payments-to-merchandise-store/ RedditMarket, Reddit's merchandise store that sells a variety of Reddit platform, is now accepting bitcoin.  Coinbase will process users' payments.  It remains unclear whether the popular website will pursue bitcoin payments on its main platform at a later date.   Bitcoin Scam MyCoin Investigation Yields Multiple Arrests in Hong Kong https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/bitcoin-scam-mycoin-investigation-yields-multiple-arrests-hong-kong/ Last month, the bitcoin exchange MyCoin collapsed and was revealed as a pyramid scheme, defrauding investors of an estimated $400 million.  An investigation is now underway in Hong Kong and five arrests of "mid-level hustlers," have already been made.  All five suspects were women who handled the face-to-face fraud and fundraising for the site.   Could Bitcoin Ease the Pain of Africa's Migrant Workforce? http://www.bbc.com/news/business-31735976 In 2014, almost $40 billion was sent to Africa from Africans living abroad, with the cost of sending money remaining high.  On average, a fee of 12.3% was charged to money transmitters to send $200 home, with the total fees amounting to $1.4 billion.  Western Union and MoneyGram control 50% or more of the remittance market in most Sub-Saharan African countries. Bitcoin could be the solution to this problem, with companies like BitPesa, which allow workers to send money from overseas to Kenya and Ghana for a flat 3% fee, growing quickly.  So far, bitcoin has run in to regulation in Africa, but it is already proving to be more cost efficient than the traditional border remittance services.   Bitcoin Social Network ZapChain Launches Micropayments Tool http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-social-network-zapchain-launches-micropayments-tool/ ZapChain, a Bitcoin-centric social network, is once again enabling micropayments with the launch of a new in-house tipping mechanism.  The site will now feature a green "Tip" button beside both questions and comments.  ZapChain is not attempting to make a profit from the tool, but instead just expose more of its users to bitcoin.   Ross Ulbricht Defense Asks for Re-Trial https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/ross-ulbricht-defense-asks-re-trial/ Ross Ulbricht, the mastermind behind the illicit online marketplace, was found guilty by a federal jury in New York on seven charges.  His sentencing will take place in May, where people are speculating that he could receive the maximum penalty of life in prison.  Ulbricht and his defense team are requesting a re-trial, based on a miscarriage of justice that is detailed with the prosecution and the judge conspiring to deny Ulbricht's fifth amendment right to due process.   Opinion: Bitcoin May Be What Gets Us Real Net Neutrality http://www.wired.com/2015/03/opinion-bitcoin-may-gets-us-real-net-neutrality/ Peter Van Valkenburgh of WIRED believes that Bitcoin could provide more competition to Internet providers, giving internet users more control over their own networks.  Users could lease out their superior broadband connection and in return receive Bitcoin.  Valkenburgh also argues that encryption would play a major role in managing one's network traffic, but at the same time provide a shared infrastructure that will allow for a better connection.  Overall, he believes Bitcoin and the low-transaction-costs involved can provide the tools to better build these networks, and ultimately unlock net neutrality.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

The Rise and Rise of Bitcoin [Foundation]

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Bit.  I was ~$2,700 in the hole last week, and I'm now down to only $1,789.  When I get down to zero, I'll delete this banner. I've cut down the losses by 1/3; now I just need some corporate love...

18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y

Speaking of cutting down losses and raising money, today an update from the Bitcoin Foundation's Executive Director, Patrick Murck.  It's hard to believe that I'm mentioning the Bitcoin Foundation's rise a full year after I went to "war" with the board, but now that the organization has its first wholly elected board, it seems like a perfect time to recognize the phenomenal job it has done of streamlining operations, refocusing its efforts on core development and identifying new revenue sources.  

It's been quite the four month turnaround...

"Turning the Corner" | Patrick Murck, Executive Director at The Bitcoin Foundation

When I took over as Executive Director in November, my goal was to get the Foundation running like a business. That is, if we focused on building value in the community, the market would reward us with the funding we need to sustainably meet our mission. But we faced some daunting challenges along the way, including:

Reputation struggles

Spread too thin as a result of lack of focus

Declining membership revenue

Falling bitcoin price

Weak balance sheet

In spite of these challenges, we had an opportunity to refocus our efforts and create a clear value proposition for our membership and the broader community interested in blockchain technology and digital currency. Discovering a path to sustainable operations required us to instill some organizational discipline around reducing expenses, eliminating distractions and focusing on revenue generating activities.

In the first two months, we began executing the first steps of our new razor sharp focus on core development. We wound down distractions, reduced our staff, and brought costs in line with what we believed could be sustainable given the total addressable market for supporting bitcoin research and development.  Over these last two months, we have accelerated membership development efforts and launched DevCore [a series of technical roundtables geared towards deepening the expertise of blockchain developers building on the Bitcoin Core] as a complementary revenue stream.  

As we went along we would know if we were making the right decisions because the market would tell us. Four months in, here are the results:

These trends reversed as a result of DevCore’s success and the increased confidence from our new and existing membership base that the Foundation will stay the course on our newly focused efforts. Our ability to grow revenue while cutting expenses in such a short period of time has been a tremendous accomplishment for the team and a clear indication that we are on the right course.

We were able to reverse those trends and orient the Foundation toward a successful future based on the grit and determination of our staff. If you see them around, please say thanks to Jodie Brady, Greg Egan, Helen Disney, Mark Woods and Jinyoung Englund. They have all made sacrifices and persevered in the face of daunting challenges to come together as a team and turn the Foundation around.

And, of course, thank you to our members. It is through the support of our membership that we are able to meet our mission of promoting research and development into Bitcoin Core, creating new avenues for people to participate in the bitcoin project and advancing the development of an open and participatory digital economy.

We still have a long way to go and there's still a lot of work to do, but if you want to build something you have to start from a solid base of support.

For Entrepreneurs

The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/.

Events

MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th

Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th!

This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin.

Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulos and

many

, many more

.

Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future.

The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals.

For more information visit

mitbitcoinexpo.org

Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - New York (Apr. 27-29)

Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. Join Inside Bitcoins when it returns to New York for the third year. Speakers include Barry Silbert, Marc Hochstein, Brian Kelly, Dan Morehead, Perianne Boring, Gil Luria, and more. Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% OFF any pass with code TBIDAILY. See you there!

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed)

-Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team.

-Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco)

-Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected]

Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed)

-Largest "universal services" bitcoin company.

-Open positions:

Security Engineer

,

Software Engineer

(2-3 years mobile product development),

Regulatory Compliance Investigator

, (1 year conducting SAR investigations)

-Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/)

BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed)

-The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company

-Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer

-Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected]

Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed)

-Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.          

-Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant.

-Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected].

Elliptic, London (VC-backed)

-Full-service bitcoin custodian.

-Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers.

-Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com

Today's Tid Bits

Former GAW Manager: $8 Million ZenMiner Investment 'A Total Lie'

http://www.coindesk.com/gaw-8-million-zenminer-investment-lie/

Eric Capuano, a former ZenMiner chief, who left GAW Miners earlier this earlier is claiming that the company's previously announced, $8m investment in the cloud mining firm ZenMiner, never took place.  In August, GAW said it had acquired a controlling stake in ZenMiner.  Capuano said, "The '$8m deal for the purchase of ZenMiner' that allegedly occurred between myself and Josh (CEO of GAW) was a total lie."  GAW Miners responded to Capuano by claiming that they are not required to disclose its equity structure to the public, and labeled the situation as a misunderstanding.  

SecondMarket Failed to Win Bitcoins in Latest Government Auction

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-06/secondmarket-failed-to-win-bitcoins-in-latest-government-auction

SecondMarket Inc. said it wasn't among the winners of the U.S. government's third bitcoin auction.  The company bid for every block of a total of 50,000 bitcoins.  According to the U.S. Marshals Service, 14 participants submitted 34 bids for the bitcoins.  SecondMarket and Tim Draper, a Silicon Valley investor, won the 80,000 bitcoins in the agency's two previous auctions.  

Utah Bitcoin Bill Passes Senate Reading, 2 Votes Away form Law

http://cointelegraph.com/news/113649/utah-bitcoin-bill-passes-senate-reading

A bill aimed at getting the state of Utah to accept bitcoin for states services has passed its first reading in Senate by a slim majority of 38 Yes votes against 36 No's.  The bill still must pass through the motion on its second and third readings, then the question of whether it is feasible for the state falls in to the hands of the "Council of Payment Options." The bill was proposed by Utah state representative Marc K. Roberts on February 10th.  

BTCPoint Creates 10,000 Bitcoin-Enabled ATMs Using Spanish Bank Network

http://cointelegraph.com/news/113649/utah-bitcoin-bill-passes-senate-reading

Following an agreement between BTCPoint and major national bank Banc Sabadell and Hal-Cash, bitcoin-to-cash withdrawals are now available at 10,000 additional bank ATMs in Spain.  Customers won't need a credit card or account with the banks in order to receive cash, they will just need to send their bitcoin to BTCPoint and they'll then receive a code that they can type in the ATM to receive their cash.  BTCPoint is launching the service with zero commission.  

Bitcoin Micropayments Debut on New Wave of Chat Platforms

http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-micropayments-debut-on-new-wave-of-chat-platforms/

TeleBit and BlockTrail bot, have recently launched, enabling bitcoin transactions on chat platforms.  TeleBit, which launched in mid-February, has nearly 5,000 daily active users and has transacted 41 BTC in total.  The BlockTrail bot is an open-source program that works with the chat platform, Slack.  Once Slack users install BlockTrail they can send and receive bitcoin by issuing commands to the bot.  Both chat platforms involvement with bitcoin was sparked by ChangeTip, the market leader of bitcoin micropayments, which is processing as many as 10,000 transactions in a day.  

First Annual Bitcoin Women's Day Gets Overwhelming Response

http://cointelegraph.com/news/113642/first-annual-bitcoin-womens-day-gets-overwhelming-response

Bitcoin Women's Day took place Sunday, based off International Women's Day, with sponsorships from BitPay, the Bitcoin Foundation, and even TBI Daily.  The event, which is now set to be held annually from this year, seeks to champion the role of women in the digital currency community, after a recent poll suggested that only 8% of bitcoin users were female.  \

Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Bitcoin Women - Part 2

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Bit.  I was ~$2,700 in the hole last week, and I'm now down to only $1,890.  When I get down to zero, I'll delete this banner. In the meantime, here are some wallets you might fund in order to help me cover the Bit's daily costs: Blockchain: 1MkF9FgxP4wQ4pqRe4uDuzAPNRCAQUA646 Circle: 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y Coinbase: 12oGSjXu5YZSRE6pfmcPxQxvswMRUVn9ZQ Xapo: 3QyLGqnYnpg9wybJh8ZSY2wVvrti7twKj9 (multi-sig!) Or @ChangeTip me on twitter @twobitidiot When I went to bed last night, I was pretty happy with what I had posted at the end of a long day regarding “Bitcoin Women’s Day”, the appreciation campaign coming up this Sunday that is geared towards driving women’s participation in the industry to a more respectable level.  I thought it made sense to start by calling attention to at least 10-12 executives at bitcoin ventures that rarely receive any mention on “women in bitcoin” lists.  That, I think, borders on criminal negligence given the way we pay lip service to how we *really need* more entrepreneurial women to join our ranks. I also opined that social media outreach is important, but the importance of active twitter accounts (my own included) pales in comparison to the importance of actually getting things done that lay the groundwork for this fledgling industry.  That applies to both sexes.  These "[insert group here] in bitcoin” campaigns too often highlight the most vocal proponents of the campaigns themselves rather than the communities they represent.  I was trying to break the self-referential monotony a bit and highlight some baller women in the process.  If we want more women in bitcoin, and more women using bitcoin, aren’t the industry’s actual leaders a better starting point than the industry's pundits? Of course, when I woke up this morning, a few people told me I was being "exclusive vs. inclusive", “branding” and “ranking” groups of women vs. applauding them all, and generally missing the point of the campaign.  So I went back and cleaned up a couple of sloppy lines that misrepresented what I had intended to communicate (thanks to @victoriavaneyk for the critique!), and am now following up as planned with part two of my post.  (You can view my edited original post here.) Good.  Moving on. Let’s talk about the good news for a minute before you head out to your happy hours: women own a disproportionately large percentage of bitcoin’s marketing, PR, legal and advocacy responsibilities.  In other words, they make us look good and keep us out of jail (which also happens to be why I got married). Most of the leadership at the Bitcoin Foundation (Jodie, Helen, Jinyoung), Coin Center (Robin, Beth, Antonie) and Chamber of Digital Commerce (Perianne, Carol) are women.  Women are at the helm of the industry’s only registered non-profit (Connie Gallippi at BitGive) and its leading media ventures (Emily Spaven, editor-in-chief at CoinDesk, Calli Bailey at yBitcoin, Toni Lane Casserly at CoinTelegraph).  The ranks of community managers, marketing VPs, compliance / GCs and PR employees are also (I would wager) close to 50-50 at the funded ventures. So I have to ask: does bitcoin have a women problem or does the industry merely reflect the shortcomings of the broader tech sector?  I think the latter. But if Bitcoin Women’s Day can help move the needle towards a better gender balance in the developer and executive ranks even a very little bit, it will be a success.   #MakeItHappen For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulos and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - New York (Apr. 27-29) Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. Join Inside Bitcoins when it returns to New York for the third year. Speakers include Barry Silbert, Marc Hochstein, Brian Kelly, Dan Morehead, Perianne Boring, Gil Luria, and more. Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% OFF any pass with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits U.S. Auction Suggests Lingering Interest in Bitcoin http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/06/business/dealbook/us-auction-suggests-lingering-interest-in-bitcoin.html?_r=0 Yesterday, the United States Marshals Service held an auction for 50,000 bitcoins, worth around $14 million, that were seized in connection with the online bazaar Silk Road.  The USMS received 34 total bids, and 14 registered bidders took part in the auction.  The bitcoins were seized from computer hardware that belonged to Ross Ulbricht, a co-founder of Silk Road, who was convicted in February on charges related to the operation of the site.  In total, the government recovered 173,991 bitcoins from Silk Road, meaning 44.341 bitcoins remain to be sold in the future.   Police Arrest Five in MyCoin Bitcoin Exchange Scheme Case http://www.coindesk.com/police-arrest-mycoin-bitcoin-exchange/ The Hong Kong police force has arrested five individuals in connection with the collapse of MyCoin, a bitcoin trading platform.  MyCoin's 43 investors lost $8.1m due to fraudulent activities, while the five individuals were arrested for conspiracy to defraud by soliciting funds for the scheme.  Early reports suggest that MyCoin may have functioned as a Ponzi scheme.   Deutsche Bank Veteran Starts Institutional Bitcoin Exchange in Brazil http://www.coindesk.com/deutsche-bank-veteran-bitcoin-exchange-brazil/ Marcelo Miranda, a nine-year Deutsche Bank veteran, is launching a bitcoin exchange, FlowBTC today.  Miranda has struck a partnership with bitcoin exchange software provider AlphaPoint, which will connect FlowBTC to other exchanges around the world.  Brazil is lacking a solid bitcoin exchange, Miranda hopes his company will fill this need. Bitcoin Exchange Quadriga to Go Public in Reverse Takeover http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-exchange-quadriga-public-reverse-takeover/ Quadriga, a Canadian-based bitcoin exchange, has entered an agreement that, if executed, will have the company debuting on the Canadian Securities Exchange.   Quadriga is waiting for approval by the Supreme Court of British Columbia to conduct a reverse takeover of the shell company Whiteside Capital Corporation.  Quadriga will merge with Whiteside to become a public company called Quadriga FinTech Solutions Corp, where Quadriga will be the owner of Whiteside Capital and its bitcoin exchange subsidiary, Quadriga CX.   Jim Harper: 2015 Will Rebuild the Bitcoin Foundation http://www.coindesk.com/jim-harper-2015-will-rebuild-the-bitcoin-foundation/ In a recent interview with CoinDesk, Jim Harper, the Bitcoin Foundation's newly elected board member and former global policy council, explained how he was let go from the organization in December, and his hope of the Foundation for the future.  Harper is already describing 2015 as a "rebuilding year" for the Foundation.  Harper believes that research will be key to helping the foundation grow and use its resources more wisely, and that a great emphasis needs to be put on the Foundation's members.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Women in Bitcoin

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Bit. I was ~$2,700 in the hole last week, and I’m now down to only $1,990. When I get down to zero, I’ll delete this banner. In the meantime, here are some wallets you might fund in order to help me cover the Bit’s daily costs:

Blockchain: 1MkF9FgxP4wQ4pqRe4uDuzAPNRCAQUA646

Circle: 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y

Coinbase: 12oGSjXu5YZSRE6pfmcPxQxvswMRUVn9ZQ

Xapo: 3QyLGqnYnpg9wybJh8ZSY2wVvrti7twKj9 (multi-sig!)

Or @ChangeTip me on twitter @twobitidiot

What’s up with that little purple logo underneath the TBI avatar?

A number of top bitcoin companies (and one Idiot) are teaming up to celebrate women in bitcoin (and beyond) on International Women’s Day this Sunday (and beyond). You can read more about the campaign here.

While it’s not statistically surprising that an industry dominated by startups and that sits at the intersection of finance and technology is sparsely populated by women, the ratio is still pretty bad by just about any measure. Over 90% of employees, users, executives, investors, and enthusiasts in the industry are still men. So while I’m usually not a fan of arbitrary appreciation days like this (I find them patronizing in many circumstances), I’m willing to try anything to boost engagement with the sex that controls the purse strings of most American households, and makes the industry itself more approachable — not just in appearances, but in reality. You should too.

Let me say that I’m all for the twitterati [Note: this is a gender neutral,relatively common term, not a “branding” as has been suggested to me], but for today, I’d prefer to highlight the contributions of women who are less active on social media and gender advocacy (which is a visible cause, but by itself, usually one with limited impact), and more focused on those who are building the foundation of the blockchain industry (less visible, significant levels of long-term impact) as those seem to be the types we are desperately trying to woo. A glass half full observation would be there are more women FTEs working on bitcoin-related projects or at bitcoin ventures at this point than there were total employees in the industry at this same time last year. A glass half empty observation would be that the women in bitcoin’s operatingleadership ranks are trickier to spot.

[Note: I apologize if my original post made it seem as if I was dismissing certain groups. As you can see from my follow-up post, it was my intention to write a two part series on the subject; however, man or woman, you have greater impact if you’re doing things vs. writing about them. Not backing down from that, and I’m surprised if that’s even incendiary…]

Here are the women at funded bitcoin companies who sit in their respective C-suites: Cindy McAdams (Xapo), Karen Gifford (Ripple), Juthica Chou (LedgerX), Catheryne Nicholson (BlockCypher), Hannah Kim (Volabit), Megan Burton (CoinX), Joyce Kim (Stellar), Annemarie Tierney (SecondMarket), Elizabeth Rossiello and Charlene Chen (BitPesa), Luciana Gruszeczka (BitPagos), and Anjali Kamath (BitPay).

No listicle or arbitrary ranking here; just proof that there are in fact awesome entrepreneurial women in places of authority within the industry. There’s a long way to go to get to respectability (much less balance), but it’s not a bad start.

*My knowledge is, of course, limited, but before you start peppering me with “but you forgot Jane Doe” emails, note “funded” and “C-suite.” If I made a glaring omission then let me know.

For Entrepreneurs

The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester. The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don’t need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.) To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/.

Events

MIT Bitcoin Expo — March 7–8th

Get your tickets today — MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th!

This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin.

Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulos and many, many more.

Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome. Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops. Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future.

The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals.

For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org

Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo — New York (Apr. 27–29)

Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. Join Inside Bitcoins when it returns to New York for the third year. Speakers include Barry Silbert, Marc Hochstein, Brian Kelly, Dan Morehead, Perianne Boring, Gil Luria, and more.

Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% OFF any pass with code TBIDAILY. See you there!

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected]

Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest “universal services” bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2–3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/)

BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected]

Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected].

Today’s Tid Bits

Ripple Labs Joins Cross-Border Payments Association http://www.coindesk.com/ripple-labs-joins-cross-border-payments-association/ Ripple Labs, the San Francisco based startup behind the digital payment network Ripple, has joined the International Payments Framework Association (IFPA). The IFPA provides best practices, rule sets, and guidance on how to improve cross-border payments. The partnership will help Ripple “create a complete, real-time, cross border payment system,” according to Nilesh Dusane the director of business development at Ripple Labs.

Former Netscape Director Launches Bitcoin Remittance App Abra http://www.coindesk.com/launch-bitcoin-remittance-abra/ As mentioned in last night’s post, Bill Barhydt, the entrepreneur and former Netscape director, debuted a bitcoin venture called Abra. Users can deposit cash into the Abra app through an approved teller or by using their debit card, and then send money anywhere, the app then uses bitcoin in the back end to facilitate peer-to-peer transactions. All transactions are then denominated in US dollars. Previously, Barhydt founded mobile banking startup Boom Financial, which raised $17m in 2012, and WebSentric, one of the first online meeting services. He is also credited with giving the first TED Talk on bitcoin.

The Future of Bitcoin: The Readers Weigh In http://blogs.wsj.com/briefly/2015/03/04/the-future-of-bitcoin-the-readers-weigh-in-at-a-glance/ The Wall Street Journal’s MoneyBeat blog conducted a poll that found that 83% respondents said they believed there is a future for crytocurrencies such as bitcoin. WSJ then went on to collect and edit excerpts from some of its readers about bitcoin, which can be found here. Feel free to submit your two sense.

Introducing CoinDesk Research: Exclusive Insight, Comment and Analysis http://www.coindesk.com/introducing-coindesk-research-exclusive-insight-comment-and-analysis/ CoinDesk has launched a new in-depth analysis reports service, CoinDesk Research. This platform will hope to provide industry-leading research and insights on the main issues around digital currencies and analyze their emergence into the mainstream. The inaugural CoinDesk Research report is about regulation, and features insights from legal experts, comments from HSMC and Wells Fargo, and even detailed information on tax, licensing, and banking.

First Annual Bitcoin Women’s Day is Coming this Sunday https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/first-annual-bitcoin-womens-day-coming-sunday/ On Sunday, March 8th the Bitcoin community will celebrate the first annual Bitcoin Women’s Day. The day will shine a light on the accomplishments of women within the Bitcoin community and will hope to spur the growth of women to begin using Bitcoin. As of now, less than 8% of Bitcoin users are female. The logo on the top of blog, below the TBI avatar, is the official logo for Bitcoin Women’s Day.

Have a tip or feedback? Email me! ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Abra Wins Launch Festival 2015

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Bit.  I was ~$2,700 in the hole last week, and I'm now down to only $2,142.  When I get down to zero, I'll delete this banner. In the meantime, here are some wallets you might fund in order to help me cover the Bit's daily costs: Blockchain: 1MkF9FgxP4wQ4pqRe4uDuzAPNRCAQUA646 Circle: 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y Coinbase: 12oGSjXu5YZSRE6pfmcPxQxvswMRUVn9ZQ Xapo: 3QyLGqnYnpg9wybJh8ZSY2wVvrti7twKj9 (multi-sig!) Or @ChangeTip me on twitter @twobitidiot ABRA WINS LAUNCH FESTIVAL 2015 Bitcoin's first killer app may have just launched. Don't take my word for it...take it from the "grand jury" at Launch Festival 2015, who just awarded bitcoin mobile remittance service Abra the competition's top prize.  To the best of my knowledge, this is (by far) the biggest startup competition win for a bitcoin company to date. For proper context, previous winners of the Launch competition include Dropbox, Fitbit, Mint.com, Yammer and Stack Overflow.  Abra - and bitcoin by extension - are in pretty damn fine company tonight.   Huge congratulations to the Abra team (@abraglobal)!  Such phenomenal news, and I'm thrilled that we at DCG have been working with the team as an investor.  (CEO Bill Barhydt had also been a supporter of the Bit...since long before he was famous with Abra.) There are so many things that Abra has gotten right with its product strategy and launch, but let me share with you the highlights before you watch CEO Bill's pitch yourself.  Let these lessons guide you, oh aspiring blockchain entrepreneurs of the future.   1) Abra does a great job promoting transparency and empowering its users.  It's like an Uber for cash (I don't give a shit if that's an overused comparison, because it legitimately works here).  People are the bitcoin "tellers" in Abra's workflows and a rating system allows users from anywhere in the globe to form trusted networks that allow them to exchange cash for bitcoin ("digital cash").  Abra's cash in / cash out service providers facilitate real-time remittances and bring heightened transparency (and ultimately competition) to the fees associated with actually sending money overseas. 2) Abra abstracts away bitcoin.  Watch Bill's presentation.  He doesn't say bitcoin at all, I don't think.  He says "digital cash", the product and UX is entirely USD focused, and he doesn't confuse what is happening behind the scenes (using the bitcoin blockchain and multi-sig) with what actually matters to the user, which is fast, reliable, inexpensive, global money transfer.   3) Abra is also entirely peer-to-peer.  It's a software company, not a custodian.  The fact that the company merely connects its users to its tellers to exchange cash/bitcoin keeps it outside of money transmitter regulations and the long reach of NYDFS's bitlicense.  They never touch customer funds, and avoiding that headache should lead to faster growth, fewer compliance issues, and lower fees. 4) Most importantly, Abra is live with a great looking product.  Unlike most other #bitcoin company's which pre-announce and overstate their plans and ambitions, Abra stayed in stealth mode for seven months before making this monster entrance.  Go check it out: https://www.goabra.com/ This really could be bitcoin's first killer app. Poach Me From the Bit! In the market for a summer finance intern who has developed an expertise in the bitcoin / fintech market?  A well-polished business writer, social media guru, and all around workhorse? I'd love to talk!  My name is Andrew Thomas, and I'm a junior at Boston College majoring in finance and information systems.  I'm the co-founder and president of the BC Bitcoin Club, and for the past year, I've curated all of the news summaries, job postings and events you see "below the fold" in the Daily Bit.  As lead editor, I've helped TBI double his subscriber base and triple his twitter following, but in the coming months, I hope to hand over the reins to my replacement as I begin an internship in financial services. Please email me at [email protected] if you think I'd be a good fit for a position at your company! For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulos and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29) Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more. Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the Berlin and New York events with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits California Bill Proposes License Requirement for Bitcoin Businesses http://www.coindesk.com/california-bill-license-require-bitcoin-business/ AB-1326, a bill introduced to the California legislature, would prohibit virtual currency businesses from operating unless they are licensed by the Department of Business Oversight (DBO) or have received an exemption from the agency.  The bill would require license application to pay a $5,000 fee to register, provide identifying information, and keep a certain amount of funds in "investment-grade permissible investments."  The bill was suggestively a product of ongoing security concerns over activities in the digital currency space.   Andreas Antonopoulos Makes Case for Bitcoin Before Australian Senate http://www.coindesk.com/andreas-antonopoulos-makes-case-for-bitcoin-before-australian-senate/ Andreas M. Antonopoulos, Bitcoin evangelist, has appeared before the Australian Senate as a part of inquiry into the local treatment of digital currencies.  Antonopoulos made the case for bitcoin, praising its unique architecture and important implications for network access, innovation, and privacy.  He emphasized that Australia is already the home of a thriving bitcoin industry, and that it could be potentially become "a leader in the region and the world."   Tech Bureau Inc. Raises $835,000, Launches Major Bitcoin Exchange in Japan http://www.marketwatch.com/story/tech-bureau-inc-raises-835000-launches-major-bitcoin-exchange-in-japan-2015-03-04 Tech Bureau Inc. today added a bitcoin exchange to its crypto currency lineup called Zaif, backed by $835,000 in funding from Nippon Technology Venture Partners (NTVP).  Zaif is already the world's largest Monacoin exchange and now has the potential to become the largest crypto currency exchange in Japan.   Bitcoin Still Confuses Bankers http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-03-03/bitcoin-still-confuses-bankers Central banks, the official guardians of monetary stability, are struggling with how to properly handle Bitcoin.  The ECB released a mixed report this week regarding the currency, while European countries such as Sweden and Finland deny it is a currency at all, and other countries such as Germany consider it to be a financial instrument.  The Bank of England admits the currency "may have significant promise," but remains hesitant with its formal regulation.  Central banks may be hoping for Bitcoin to die a natural death, but it's becoming more clear that the digital currency is here to stay.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

The Collective Value Floor

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Bit.  I was ~$2,700 in the hole last week, and I'm now down to only $2,337.  When I get down to zero, I'll delete this banner. In the meantime, here are some wallets you might fund in order to help me cover the Bit's daily costs: Blockchain: 1MkF9FgxP4wQ4pqRe4uDuzAPNRCAQUA646 Circle: 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y Coinbase: 12oGSjXu5YZSRE6pfmcPxQxvswMRUVn9ZQ Xapo: 3QyLGqnYnpg9wybJh8ZSY2wVvrti7twKj9 (multi-sig!) Or @ChangeTip me on twitter @twobitidiot *** Last week I wrote a little bit about the price of bitcoin.  Over the course of two posts, I shared my mental model for justifying bitcoin's non-zero value.  I received a lot of feedback—mostly positive around my thinking regarding bitcoin's theoretical floor price given a certain level of "transaction demand”; somewhat negative around my comparison of bitcoin's transactional demand / reservation demand multiple to stock multiples.  [Yes, the P/E ratio comparison is imperfect for a number of reasons, but it’s a reasonable analogy, and I haven’t seen any other model that makes more sense.] The punch line of those first two posts was that if we agree blockchain technology has value and will disrupt financial services, then some blockchain native tokens must have value.  How widespread the technology has the potential to become and how fast it might grow will ultimately dictate how willing speculators are to hold these native tokens. But this begs the question: what happens if bitcoin goes to zero?  After all, don’t we say all the time that bitcoin will either be one of the best performing investments of all time or its value will become virtually worthless? This binary outcome seems scary at first glance, but it’s not the whole story…bitcoin probably doesn't go to zero without a viable replacement emerging well in advance.  I doubt bitcoin will die and participants in this growing ecosystem (with $500mm in VC funding) will be left operating businesses running on an irreparably broken technology.  Instead, it seems much more likely that bitcoin simply fades away as another alternative currency slowly overtakes it.   Consider the two most likely scenarios that would threaten bitcoin’s viability as the winner-take-all blockchain token: a hard fork of the protocol over rifts concerning mining centralization, block size limits, hashing algorithms, seignorage plans, etc., OR drastic overregulation that sees blockchain technologies which promote anonymity essentially banned in favor of friendlier Big Brother-friendly alternatives.  In either scenario, the broader bitcoin community would know well in advance which “next best” option was available in the event the bitcoin blockchain became unsecured.  The major investors, ventures, and users who relied on bitcoin’s rails for their respective services would simply migrate over to a new blockchain and its corresponding token. XRP or ETH would go from less than 10% of bitcoin’s market cap to maybe 50%  leading up to any feared shift, before sprinting past BTC as bitcoiners fire-sold their rapidly depreciating holdings.  Today, we typically see bitcoin and its alternatives rise and fall in tandem because they are complements.  But in any catastrophic edge case, one or two of these complements would probably emerge as a substitute, and you’d see at least some assets reinvested in the new dominant blockchain token.  That is even if bitcoin plummeted to near zero, other alternatives would survive, and one or two would probably even rise to absorb the blockchain demand. Call it "Idiot’s Law": it can’t possibly all go to zero at the same time, can it? For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulous and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29)  Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the Berlin and New York events with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits Olivier Janssens and Jim Harper Voted to Bitcoin Foundation Board http://www.coindesk.com/olivier-janssens-and-jim-harper-voted-to-bitcoin-foundation-board/ Following a controversial, blockchain voting process Olivier Janssens and Jim Harper have been elected to the board of the Bitcoin Foundation.  From the eligible voters, Janssens received 277 votes and Harper received 264. Janssens hopes to decentralize the core development of Bitcoin, so its developers can be paid directly by the community.  While Harper said he focus is on "building the foundation's stability and solidity."   European Central Bank: Digital Currencies 'Inherently Unstable' http://www.coindesk.com/european-central-bank-digital-currencies-inherently-unstable/ The European Central Bank (ECB) described digital currency as "inherently unstable," but potentially transformative in the realm of payments, in a recently published report.  The report builds off the ECB's study published in 2012, which offered a general overview of digital currency. The ECB noted digital currency's potential in the remittance ecosystem, but warned against the growth of altcoins or as they refer to them, "scamcoins."   DigitalBTC Launches Mining Contracts Platform DigitalX Mintsy http://www.coindesk.com/digitalbtc-launches-mining-contracts-platform-digitalx-mintsy/ DigitalBTC, an Australian bitcoin company, has launched digitalX Mintsy, a new service that allows users to lease their computer processing power for cryptocurrency mining and trade contracts on its online marketplace.  DigitalBTC is the first bitcoin firm to be listen on the Australian Securities Exchange, and it's DigitalX Mintsy product has already received "over 30,000 pre-enrollments," according to the company.   Coinplug Enables Bitcoin Buying at Over 7,000 Regular ATMs http://www.coindesk.com/coinplug-enables-bitcoin-buying-at-over-7000-regular-atms/ Coinplug, a South Korean bitcoin service company, has enabled bitcoin purchases with credit cards through over 7,000 regular cashpoint ATMs across the country.  The deal was made possible due to Coinplug's partnership with Nautilus Hyosung, the Korean ATM manufacturer with 7,000 to 9,000 active machines in South Korea.   BIT Poised to Become Publicly Traded Bitcoin Found http://www.wsj.com/articles/bitcoin-investment-trust-gets-finras-ok-to-become-public-bitcoin-fund-1425242094 Following approval and assignment of a ticker symbol by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Barry Silbert’s Bitcoin Investment Trust (BIT) is poised to become the first publicly traded bitcoin fund, on an electronic platform operated by OTC Markets Group.  The BIT has been racing against the Winklevoss Twins’s, Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust, which is going through a lengthy Securities and Exchange Commission process to register a formal exchange-trade funded.  The BIT took an alternative, faster route to the public markets.  The BIT was originally launched in 2013 as a private fund for accredited investors with annual incomes greater than $200,000 or assets of more than $1 million. Each share of BIT is worth approximately one-tenth of a bitcoin. J.P. Morgan Goes Hunting for Disruptors and Bitcoin Experts http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2015/02/27/j-p-morgan-goes-hunting-for-disruptors-and-bitcoin-experts/ A recent job posting on J.P. Morgan Chase’s website highlighted the challenge facing Wall Street firms looking for cutting-edge technologists.  The job description included, “...you have an opinion on bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, and you are probably ambivalent about the prospect of working for a large financial institution.”  The major bank needs smart techies, who aren’t necessarily, eager to work for them. The Blockchain is Becoming the Sparkle in Bitcoin http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/02/business/dealbook/data-security-is-becoming-the-sparkle-in-bitcoin.html?emc=edit_dlbkam_20150302&nl=business&nlid=69785252 Entrepreneurs worldwide are now working to harness Bitcoin’s blockchain, a decentralized database that is driven by cryptography, for applications beyond bitcoin transactions.  The block chain could ultimately upend anything that requires a trusted middleman for verification, like stocks, contracts, property titles, patents and marriage licenses.  According to Adam Ludwin, a co-founder of Chain.com, banks and multinational telecommunications companies are quietly expressing interest in ways to take advantage of the block chain.  Companies working on block-chain applications are also beginning to secure chunks of financing, such as Blockstream ($21m) and Ripple Labs ($9m). Investors are now starting to bet on the technology, not just the currency.   Bitcoin Swaps Exchange Gets Public Listing Via Reverse Merger http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2015/02/27/bitcoin-swaps-exchange-gets-public-listing-via-reverse-merger/ Tera Group Inc., a bitcoin derivative trading platform, announced a reverse merger with MGT Capital Investments, a New York Stock Exchange-listed company that runs online gaming sites, which could make the Tera Exchange, a publically listed company.  Tera will take a controlling stake in MGT, which will issue common stock shares worth $0.70 of its pro form equity to Tera’s owners.  Tera is the first regulated platform for bitcoin derivatives, approved by the Commodities Futures Trading Commission in September. Stellar Takes a Step Into the Microfinance World http://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2015/02/28/bitbeat-stellar-takes-a-step-into-the-microfinance-world/ Stellar, the cryptocurrency-based payments systems, announced a partnership with Oradian, a banking-software company, to use the Stellar platform in its core banking software for microfinance institutions (MFI).  The combined Oradian/Stellar product would allow microfinance companies to quickly send money to each other, according to Jed McCaleb, the founder of Stellar.  The partnership is beginning with a pilot program in Nigeria. Augur Bets on Bright Future for Blockchain Prediction Markets http://www.coindesk.com/augur-future-blockchain-prediction-market/ Augur, a decentralized, blockchain-based prediction market founded by Jack Peterson is set to launch a token crowdsale this spring.  The Augur team, featuring Jeremy Gardner and Joey Krug, are out to prove that a platform that allows participants to bet on the outcome of real-world events can be a vehicle for social good, rather than another digital gambling outlet.  Augur intends to use two types of tokens to facilitate its market, first it will use a sidechains technology to transfer and hold bitcoin during wagers, and second an Augur token, Reputation, which is the token of focus during its upcoming crowdsale.  Gardner believes that Augur could be a “world-changing forecasting tool.” BitFury Launches New 28nm Bitcoin Mining ASIC http://www.coindesk.com/bitfury-launches-new-28nm-bitcoin-mining-asic/ BitFury, a bitcoin mining giant, has announced it has completed the manufacturing of its anticipated 28nm ASIC chip.  Valery Vavilov, BitFury’s CEO, believes that the chip is the company’s “most energy-efficient and high-performance technology to date” that will keep up with chip efficiency in line with the rising difficulty of the bitcoin mining network.   Bitcoin Takes the Stage at SXSW 2015 Interactive https://bitcoinmagazine.com/19421/bitcoin-takes-stage-sxsw-2015-interactive/ SXSW 2015 Interactive Festival that is known to "preview the technology of tomorrow" will feature speakers form the top companies in the Bitcoin industry who will present a full-day, mini-conference of Bitcoin-related content.  The event will feature five sessions titled, "What is Bitcoin?," "Bitcoin 2.0," "A Future with Bitcoin," "Impact of Developing World," and "Real World Applicaitons."  The event is taking place on Monday, March 16th at Startup Village in the Austin Grand Ballroom of the Hilton Downtown in Austin, Texas.  BitPay, Gyft, LibraTax, ChangeTip, and Chain are sponsoring Bitcoin at SXSW 2015.   Bitstamp to Introduce New Fee Structure http://www.coindesk.com/bitstamp-to-introduce-new-fee-structure/ Bitstamp, the Slovenia-based bitcoin exchange, is set to simplify its fee schedule next month by grouping market participants according to the amount of dollars traded over a 30-day period.  Which will significantly lower the transactions fees charged by the exchange for the "vast majority" of it's clients.  Currently, the structure is that a buyer or seller trading less than $500 would be subject to a 0.50% fee; however, the updated structure will feature a 0.25% charge for anyone spending less than $20,000,   Igot Expands Exchange and Remittance Services to Kenya http://www.coindesk.com/igot-expands-exchange-and-remittance-services-to-kenya/ Igot, a Australian based bitcoin exchange, has expanded to Kenya following the acquisition of TagPesa, a local cryptocurrency exchange and remittance gateway.  Igot will also be integrating with M-Pesa's mobile payments service as a part of the expansion.  Currently, the company provides remittance services to over 40 countries worldwide, and this expansion will allow Igot's international customers to send funds directly into a friend of relative's Kenyan bank account.   DigitalBTC Reports Net Loss on Falling Bitcoin Price http://www.coindesk.com/digitalbtc-reports-net-loss-on-falling-bitcoin-price/ Digital CC Ltd an Australian bitcoin company has published a $2.3m net loss after tax as the results for its half-year period up to December 31st, 2014.  The firm was the first bitcoin company to be listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), trading as digitalBTC.  The firm's total revenue was $14.5m, of this, $4.6m was from bitcoin mining and $9.9m came from its liquidity desk.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Breaking Bitcoin Fundraising News

Earlier this week I wrote that I was "kicking off a fundraise", and a few of you emailed me to ask what that meant.  Well, I’ve started to pull together some of my 2014 tax records and it looks like the Daily Bit was underwater to the tune of ~$2,700 last year.  That's a big red number, hence the clickbait blog title. So cue the Sarah McLachlan music, because this Idiot is kicking off an annual campaign. If you’ve enjoyed the content in the Daily Bit so far, please send some BTC to one of the addresses below.  I’m not paying myself for this blog and have no interest in looking for sponsorships.  [For one thing it takes too long, and for another, there’s brand “counterparty” risk - how many defunct miners and Garza companies have paid for placement on other crypto news sites?]  It’s a privilege to have such an engaged (and did I mention attractive?) audience.  But I would like to at least break-even for this daily effort so I don’t feel like I’m paying you all to stand on my soapbox. Think of your contribution to the Daily Bit as a quarter in the corner dive bar's jukebox.  While you may still hear some crappy background music even if you don’t pony up any change, a couple of bucks gets the good tunes playing and keeps the party going.   And honestly, if I’m losing this kind of money on a widely-followed, low-expense blog, then our "micro-tipping for content” use case is total bullshit at this point.  It would be great to prove that a site can sustain itself on collective sponsorship rather than ads; help me prove it! I’ve included several different wallet options (for those with biases one way or another): Blockchain: 1MkF9FgxP4wQ4pqRe4uDuzAPNRCAQUA646 Circle: 18Za7SmHRxbmkEj5QLeSqnYWGm8zjsWf7y Coinbase: 12oGSjXu5YZSRE6pfmcPxQxvswMRUVn9ZQ Xapo: 3QyLGqnYnpg9wybJh8ZSY2wVvrti7twKj9 (multi-sig!) Or @ChangeTip me on twitter @twobitidiot.  (You need to follow, first.) If you’re a sponsor who has given big in the past, you might consider this your annual gift, because yes, it’s been over a year since most of my “thanks for breaking the Mt. Gox news” tips and gifts.   Thanks for being awesome. Cheers, TBI *** Couple of other random notes: -Part three of my post on price is coming tomorrow (finally). -The temptation to write about cool shit I'm seeing and doing on a day to day basis is high, but doesn't jive with my job responsibilities.  Lots of good stuff coming, though. -March is going to be an exciting month for bitcoin. -I'm looking for a guest writer to take over the Bit for the week of March 23-27. Email me if you think you have what it takes to write five consecutive readable daily blogs about bitcoin. Poach Me From the Bit! In the market for a summer finance intern who has developed an expertise in the bitcoin / fintech market?  A well-polished business writer, social media guru, and all around workhorse? I'd love to talk!  My name is Andrew Thomas, and I'm a junior at Boston College majoring in finance and information systems.  I'm the co-founder and president of the BC Bitcoin Club, and for the past year, I've curated all of the news summaries, job postings and events you see "below the fold" in the Daily Bit.  As lead editor, I've helped TBI double his subscriber base and triple his twitter following, but in the coming months, I hope to hand over the reins to my replacement as I begin an internship in financial services. Please email me at [email protected] if you think I'd be a good fit for a position at your company! For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulous and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29)  Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the Berlin and New York events with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits 30-Day Comment Period for BitLicense Revision Begins Today http://www.coindesk.com/30-day-comment-period-bitlicense-begins/ For the following 30 days the public can submit comments on the latest draft of New York's proposed BitLicense.  Roughly three weeks ago the initial framework of the publication was introduced.  The first comment period attracted more than 3,700 comments from participants as diverse as Amazon and Walmart.   Ex-Goldman Director Aims to Hedge Your Bitcoin Risk http://www.cnbc.com/id/102454375 A London-based bitcoin derivatives trading platform, named Crypto Facilities was recently set up by former bankers from Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas and Societe Generale. The platform is being advertised as a broker which specializes in bitcoin derivatives, trading options and futures.   Bank of England Sees Future in Bitcoin and 'Considerable Promise' of Blockchain http://cointelegraph.com/news/113560/bank-of-england-sees-future-in-bitcoin-sharia-and-considerable-promise-of-blockchain The UK Central Bank has altered its stance on Bitcoin, publishing a report in support of digital currencies, stating it, "may reshape the mechanisms for making secure payments."  The Bank of England's report also highlighted the benefits of blockchain technology, saying it holds "considerable promise."  The report is a surprising U-turn for the central bank, which previously maintained strict regulatory outlook towards cryptocurrency.   RE/MAX London Accept Bitcoin, Litecoin and Dogecoin http://www.coindesk.com/remax-london-accepts-bitcoin-litecoin-dogecoin-pilot-program/ RE/MAX's 16 London office will now accept bitcoin, litecoin and dogecoin as a payment for property rentals through a partnership with payment processor GoCoin.  The franchise manages several hundred properties, mainly in central London.   OKCoin Gives Away $1.6 Million in Bitcoin for Chinese New Year http://www.coindesk.com/okcoin-gives-away-1-6-million-in-bitcoin-for-chinese-new-year/ OKCoin, the Beijing-based bitcoin exchange, has given away 10m yuan in bitcoin ($1,598,390) as a promotional part of Chinese New Year's 'red envelope' campaign.  The digital-only giveaway, which stems form the Chinese tradition of exchanging red envelopes containing money, has saw "roughly half a million new users" sign up.  The giveaway was conducted through the WeChat messaging app and bitcoin was transacted through OKCoin's OKLink multisig wallet and merchant services platform.   Booking Flights with Bitcoin, Taking Off http://www.economist.com/blogs/gulliver/2015/02/booking-flights-bitcoin Earlier this month, UATP, a payment network for alines, announced it was teaming up with Bitnet, a bitcoin processing platform to offer 260 of the world's largest carriers the option of accepting bitcoin for flight books.  However, as of now, none have opted in to the payment system.  Since airline companies already operate on paper thin profit margins and often have to deal with foreign currency transactions, a cross-border payment tool (i.e. bitcoin) that also offers lower transactions fees makes sense.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Mt. Gox - One Year Later

One year ago yesterday, I broke the news of the ~$480 million loss at Mt. Gox, and exposed the company’s intentions to cover up the damage via a hastily crafted “Crisis Strategy Draft.”  After authenticating the document, and realizing the sheer magnitude of the bankruptcy, I concluded: "I believe this will be catastrophic for Bitcoin, both as a currency and as a fledgling industry." I was wrong.  Bitcoin marches on, unencumbered. That no one else (to my knowledge) acknowledged yesterday's anniversary of Gox’s collapse speaks to our collective priorities and bitcoin’s under-appreciated strength.  Six months after the Silk Road shutdown, and one month after the arrest of Bitcoin Foundation Vice Chairman, Charlie Shrem, the industry’s largest exchange lost 7% of the bitcoin money supply — a figure that still seems surreal to me.  Yet just one year later, we are in the midst of another record quarter of bitcoin venture capital investment, progressing steadily towards US-regulated exchanges and a BitLicense, and lean upon bitcoin security ventures like BitGo and Xapo, that hadn’t even launched yet. The growth and progress has been simply staggering. But as I look back on my pessimistic forecast for bitcoin in the Gox haze, I can’t honestly say that I’d have predicted a different or "more measured” (as some criticized me for at the time) outcome for the industry.  It is shocking that we ultimately emerged unscathed following that absolutely brutal six month stretch of bitcoin’s evolution.  I think we may under-appreciate this chapter of the bitcoin miracle more than any other. Our industry was like a troubled teenager that got expelled from school, arrested for a DWI, and then gambled away his parents’ money while under house arrest, and yet somehow still got to live at home and drive a Range Rover to his new expensive prep school while he was on probation.  Some people might still look at him and say, “that kid’s bad news”, but his parents, who saw the potential from a young age, would refuse to give up on him for mere youthful indiscretions and stay the course. I find it telling that on the one year anniversary of Gox, we heard nothing from the media about bitcoin’s tarnished brand, only about the LA ad agency which is starting to promote it. Bitcoin marches on, unencumbered.   Poach Me From the Bit! In the market for a summer finance intern who has developed an expertise in the bitcoin / fintech market?  A well-polished business writer, social media guru, and all around workhorse? I'd love to talk!  My name is Andrew Thomas, and I'm a junior at Boston College majoring in finance and information systems.  I'm the co-founder and president of the BC Bitcoin Club, and for the past year, I've curated all of the news summaries, job postings and events you see "below the fold" in the Daily Bit.  As lead editor, I've helped TBI double his subscriber base and triple his twitter following, but in the coming months, I hope to hand over the reins to my replacement as I begin an internship in financial services. Please email me at [email protected] if you think I'd be a good fit for a position at your company! For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulous and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29)  Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the Berlin and New York events with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Summer Internship Opportunity: The Future of Transactions, Participation & Trust -Join IDEO’s Future Lab at the Harvard i-lab for a paid summer internship exploring trust in transactions, bitcoin, blockchain, micropayments, and the future of participation platforms. -Participants will be placed on teams, learn skills from venture designers, and access emerging technology experts. Student ventures may become part of IDEO’s Start-Up In Residence Program or be funded by corporate sponsors. -We want students with a mix of backgrounds. No prior experience required. -Key Dates: •    Applications due February 25 •    Make-a-Thon weekend (required participation) February 27 through March 1st •    Summer Internship June 1 to July 31 -Apply Here and direct questions to [email protected] Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits BitGo Secures First Ever Comprehensive Bitcoin Theft Insurance for up to $250,000 http://cointelegraph.com/news/113556/bitgo-secures-first-ever-comprehensive-bitcoin-theft-insurance-for-up-to-250000 BitGo, the multi-sig bitcoin security firm, announced today that it has partnered with the A-rated XL Group insurance companies companies to provide comprehensive coverage on its customers bitcoin funds.  All of BitGo's paying customers will be eligible for protection under the XL policy for up to $250,000 in covered theft claims.  BitGo customers who opt in for the program will be protected from errors, or omissions of BitGo technology, processes, and employees, including external hacking incidents and employee theft.   Bucks to Bitcoin: Top Exchange Platform Fees Compared http://www.coindesk.com/bucks-to-bitcoin-top-exchange-platform-fees-compared/ CoinDesk explored the fees of all major seven platforms based of $1,000 transactions.  ItBit came in at the highest with a maximum purchase fee of $5.00, Bitstamp had $4.60, while BitFinex, Bitstamp, and OKCoin all had $2.00, and Coinbase and LocalBitcoins were fee less. New Hampshire Lawmakers Debate Accepting Bitcoin for Tax Payments http://www.coindesk.com/new-hampshire-bitcoin-tax-payments/ New Hampshire's state legislature held two hearings earlier this month, which focused on how the state could create a easy way for residents to pay taxes and fees using bitcoin.  The hearings were in response to a bill being proposed by state representative Eric Schlein that would allow the state to accept bitcoin, which is currently being weighed by the New Hampshire General Court Ways and Means Committee.   Is Bitcoin Speculative Foolery or a Financial Services Breakthrough? http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/243071 Carol Roth of Entrepreneur interviewed Brian Kelly, author of the new book "The Bitcoin Bing Bang," to discuss why Bitcoin is a breakthrough of financial services.  Kelly explained the differences between small 'b' bitcoin and big 'B' bitcoin, and explained how it's technology eliminates the middle man.  Kelly argues that Bitcoin will help globalize small businesses, but did mention that the volatility of the price remains to be an issue.   T-Mobile Poland Trials Bitcoin Top-Ups for Mobile Customers http://www.coindesk.com/t-mobile-poland-trials-bitcoin-top-ups-for-mobile-customers/ In Poland, T-Mobile customers can now purchase prepaid cellphone credit with bitcoin.  T-Mobile partnered with local bitcoin payment processor InPay S.A., to roll out the three-month trial service.  T-Mobile customers visit InPay's web page and add bitcoin funds by selecting the equivalent amount in Polish zloties (PLN), then send funds via a QR code or bitcoin address provided.  The entire process takes about 30 seconds and does not require the input of personal information.   WordPress Drops Bitcoin Payment Option, Says it 'May Return http://cointelegraph.com/news/113551/wordpress-drops-bitcoin-payment-option-says-it-may-return WordPress has removed its Bitcoin payment option and has not really defined if it will return or not.  The news was made without a formal announcement from WordPress or its payment processor, BitPay.  Matt Mullenweg, WordPress co-founder, said putting the option back wasn't a high priority because bitcoin payments were of a low volume compared to other options.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Rockstar Hire

Buried under my lengthy post yesterday was a brief sales pitch from Daily Bit editor and news curator, Andrew Thomas.  AT, who hails from my alma mater and has killed it day in and day out summarizing the day's bitcoin news, is looking for a summer internship.  Would love to hire him myself this summer, but I think there are better opportunities available (VC-backed bitcoin companies, hedge funds, banks, payments companies, consulting - you know, my audience) for him to launch a career. If you're looking for a good summer workhorse, I'll vouch for Andrew.  To call your attention to his own pitch, I'm delaying part three of my currency post until next Monday.  Andrew's going to do well this summer, no matter what, but I hope that you all will reach out to him to learn about the less obvious roles he could fill for you this summer.  (Future interns take note: when it comes to job placement for my own, I don't f*ck around: you'll get a dedicated job rec to 4,000+ financial services folks.) Bits are below (courtesy of AT), as are his own words on why you should hire him... Have a great weekend.   Poach Me From the Bit! (Andrew Thomas) In the market for a summer finance intern who has developed an expertise in the bitcoin / fintech market?  A well-polished business writer, social media guru, and all around workhorse?  I'd love to talk!  My name is Andrew Thomas, and I'm a junior at Boston College majoring in finance and information systems.  I'm the co-founder and president of the BC Bitcoin Club, and for the past year, I've curated all of the news summaries, job postings and events you see "below the fold" in the Daily Bit.  As lead editor, I've helped TBI double his subscriber base and triple his twitter following, but in the coming months, I hope to hand over the reins to my replacement as I begin an internship in financial services. Please email me at [email protected] if you think I'd be a good fit for a position at your company! For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulous and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29)  Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the Berlin and New York events with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits Mt. Gox Report Suggests Inside Job http://www.cnbc.com/id/102442027#. A detailed report has been published detailing the activities of an automated bot (named Willy) that appeared to game Mt. Gox's fragile systems last year, by buying thousands of coins with fake money. The report by WizSec, a five-man security consulting firm, revealed that Willy assigned itself dozens of accounts with faked US dollar balances in order to trade bitcoin at will.  Last May, 850,000 coins worth almost $500m were stolen from the Tokyo-based, and now defunct bitcoin exchange, Mt. Gox.  Willy operated during Asian hours, which is leading most to believe that the hack was in fact an inside job.   No Winners as Bitcoin Foundation Election Ends in Runoff http://www.coindesk.com/no-winners-bitcoin-foundation-election-runoff/The Bitcoin Foundation's election to fill two board seats has ended without a clear winner.  The Foundation is reporting that none of the 13 candidates received at least 50% of the vote from foundation members.  Resulting in another round of voting.  Olivier Janssens, Jim Harper, Bruce Fenton and Michael Perklin will participate in the run-off election.  Vinny Lingham, Gyft CEO, only finished with just 17.9% of the vote.  Registration for the second round begins today and will run through February 23rd.  This also marks the second consecutive election were the initial voting period has led to a runoff vote.   Stripe Finally Launches Support for Bitcoin http://venturebeat.com/2015/02/19/stripe-finally-launches-support-for-bitcoin/ Stripe, the digital payment protocol provider, launched its support for Bitcoin.  The company provides payment acceptance services for merchants such as Instacart, Kickstarter and Shopify.  Stripe started testing its Bitcoin capabilities back in March of 2014 and as of today, the program is open to anyone.  The capabilities will include: allowing all its services to accept bitcoin (with no waiting period), if you're already a Stripe Checkout user, adding bitcoin is just one line of code, bitcoin transactions will appear side-by-side with fiat currencies, and bitcoin transactions will have clear, public pricing (0.5% per transaction).   Ripple Labs Joins the Center for Financial Services Innovation https://ripple.com/blog/ripple-labs-joins-the-center-for-financial-services-innovation-network-cfsi-network/ Ripple Labs is the newest member of the Center for Financial Services Innovation Network (CFSI).  The CFSI is an organization dedicated to leading a network to promote financial health with an emphasis on reaching the underserved.  The CFSI has become the premier organization for strengthening America's financial health for the last ten years.  It has developed the Compass Principles, a framework to guide the design and delivery of high-quality financial services, and has invested over $30m in promising fintech innovations.   Bitcoin Derivatives Trading Platform Coinarch Expands into China http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-derivatives-trading-platform-coinarch-expands-into-china/ Coinarch, a derivatives-focused bitcoin trading platform, is making a push into the Chinese market with the launch of a dedicated local support staff.  Coinarch is currently in the process of officially registering as a local subsidiary, as it aims to compete with the likes of Huobi, OKCoin and BTC China.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Bitcoin's PEG Ratio

Yesterday, I wrote that the fair value of bitcoin should probably be somewhere around $0.25...but only if you buy into the crazy assumptions that a) the entire bitcoin money supply should turn over at least 1x per day, b) no one would choose to hold bitcoin for any significant length of time, and c) there will be no increase in bitcoin users or new applications to play with in the future. All of these are silly assumptions that have orders of magnitude impacts on our price estimates.  I'm confident my $0.25 / BTC bogey yesterday was dumb. So if we've at least agreed on this dumb lower bound, let's replace some of our key dumb assumptions with more sensible numbers.   For starters, it seems likely that ~20% of all bitcoins mined to date are gone.  Many early miners either lost or forgot about their (formerly) worthless coins and too many other speculators lost their private keys through mismanagement or hardware failures.  Either way: poof.  Your $0.25 bitcoins are probably worth closer to $0.30 a piece, since only 80% of the 14 million bitcoins ever mined could possibly change hands on any given day.  (Yay.)   More significantly, the speed with which we initially assumed the bitcoin monetary base would turn over is unreasonably high.  While some academics think an hourly or daily turn of bitcoin's monetary base is feasible given the fact that even very large bitcoin transfers can be settled in less than an hour, this doesn't reflect reality in a world with fiat currencies.  That’s because even if businesses and consumers cashed in and out of bitcoin instantly, the intermediaries they use for “instant" services still need to hold bitcoin while the corresponding 3-4 day (or longer) bank transfers catch up. Let's say that all of bitcoin's beta users use these intermediaries (instead of creating longer duration bitcoin “checking” accounts), who must then hold the same bitcoin their customers transact for an average of 3-4 days in order to cover working capital.  Now we're up to a $1.00 bitcoin.  (Get excited.) Before we take the next step and correct our second and third faulty assumptions regarding demand for the currency, let me make an important digression...   My intended punch line yesterday was that in a world where transaction volumes for bitcoin fluctuates day to day, there will always be a delta between bitcoin's "transactional demand” (volume-driven) and “reservation demand” (savings-driven).  The logic is that if bitcoin technology is valuable, then there is transactional demand for the tokens that fuel its use.  (Yesterday, we said that equated to $0.25.  Today, when we fix our first faulty assumption, that spikes to $1.00.)  And if transactional demand isn't perfectly stable, there will be reservation demand for the currency.  When we know others will value the currency higher on high-volume days, it seems reasonable some people will save bitcoin when it’s cheap and sell when demand is higher. It’s econ 101.   In addition, in our modern world of physical currency, banking deposits, and savings accounts, we usually have nice tidy labels for our different monetary bases.  Physical currency is "M0", M0 plus bank deposits are "M1", and M1 plus savings are "M2."  You can think of M1 as a function of the transactional demand for US dollars. How much liquid cash is necessary to fuel the day to day economic machine?  That’s M1.  You can think of M2 as a function of reservation demand for US dollars.  How much money will banks keep in their "reserves" for long-term savings and collateral?  That’s M2. Bitcoin doesn't have those nice neat divisions, though, so we need to imagine them.  If a $1.00 bitcoin (~$14mm market cap) is bitcoin's minimum M1 — the minimum required to make the tiny bitcoin economy hum — then the other 99.5% of bitcoin’s value comes from people's reservation demand for bitcoin. Is this a bubble or even slightly unreasonable? Well, we said yesterday that it might make sense for the reservation demand of bitcoin to be at least 4-5x transactional demand, in order to ensure that there is enough currency to cover transactions on the industry's highest volume days (still excluding, of course, trading volumes as those aren’t “real” in our thought experiment).  If we need $1.00 bitcoin for the payment rails to function properly for everyone who would like to use them, maybe a $5.00 bitcoin makes sense including reservation demand. And if we can accept that people save some bitcoin to sell during higher demand periods based on the simple day to day fluctuations in transactional demand, it’s seems fairly obvious why such a high percentage of bitcoin holders are saving for the long-term: they think transactional demand for bitcoin will skyrocket in the coming years. This is where the inevitable “if bitcoin accounts for just x% of the y market, bitcoin price will go to $z" analogies come into play. It’s not that the analogies themselves lack pun; it’s that they often lack proper context. Like you stuck someone in front of a PC in 1993 and said: "if the internet accounts for 50% of file storage in 20 years, cloud computing will be a $20 billion dollar industry.”  You can’t just fast forward through all supporting evidence that would lend credence to your futuristic thesis and expect audiences to lap up boyish enthusiasm. [For bitcoin, we have an advantage over the early internet crowd.  We’re building infrastructure, not apps.  There are no Pets.com projects taking flight right now.  At least, they don’t seem to be getting funded.  Infrastructure, not apps are getting all of the attention.  And the apps that are built on shoddy infrastructure are raising dumb money if any money at all.]   But you can explain that some $500 million of venture funding has been plowed into the pipes that will support the global blockchain infrastructure for the years to come.  Considering we have regionally dominant exchanges in the US, Latin America, Japan, China, India, Southeast Asia, Europe, and Africa that may open up fast, cheap remittance corridors and pave the way for reliable cross-border transactions for individuals and businesses alike, it doesn’t seem far-fetched to believe global non-trading transaction volumes could double this year. And that’s merely one blockchain tech use case.  I won’t go into other examples, but you get the idea: exponential growth in transactional demand for blockchain tech seems reasonable, if not likely.   I think many people would agree that it’s reasonable to assume average (*not peak*) bitcoin transaction volumes could double this year — as they have for the past several years — and seem likely to do again next year.  Yet in this case, our expectations for what a good reservation demand to transactional demand multiple might start to look a bit frothy. This multiple also begins to also resemble something else familiar: a price / earnings ratio. It’s an imperfect analogy, but think about it: would you pay four times earnings for a midwestern manufacturing company with no growth and slim profits?  Maybe.  Would you pay 100 times earnings for Uber?  In a heartbeat.  Uber seems more expensive, but you’re paying a premium for the growth.  Bitcoin is the same.  Assuming that your monetary base is capped and the value of transactions continues to spike radically, the M2/M1 multiple of bitcoin will (and should) be significantly higher than the greenback's. Never before in history has a scarce currency been used by an exponentially growing user base, for an exponentially growing number of use cases.  In light of that, bitcoin has and will probably continue to gyrate like a biotech stock rather than a mainstream currency.  (Notice, I didn’t denigrate bitcoin with emerging currency status, because bitcoin actually experiences frequent upwards volatility, not just steady debasement.)  And it probably will continue to attract day traders and outright speculators. But try dividing bitcoin’s (and the US Dollar’s) M2/M1 multiple by its expected growth, just like you would for PEG ratios between two companies with divergent growth rates, and something interesting happens. All of a sudden, bitcoin doesn’t look so exorbitantly priced.  Depending on your assumptions, it might just be on sale. *** Tomorrow, my final post in this short series on the legitimacy of bitcoin's price.  Why did I largely ignore bitcoin's technical and systemic risks risks in these first two posts?  Because I think thecollective minimum value of all cryptocurrency tokens will be somewhat of a constant based on total demand, enthusiasm and utility of blockchain tech.   i.e. if bitcoin fails, its own price might implode, but that value will migrate over to its superior substitute.   *** Sanity Check: There's never been anything like bitcoin, which is why it's so hard to define.  Maybe you think my approach above is silly or long-winded, but before you write it off, consider that the $17.7 trillion US economy operates with an $11.7 trillion monetary base (M2).  If we assume that the bitcoin economy requires a similar ratio to function properly, our "bitcoin GDP" needs to grow to just $10 million per day to support current prices.  I for one think the tech can support $3 billion worth of annual value to our global economy in the next few years. Poach Me From the Bit! In the market for a summer finance intern who has developed an expertise in the bitcoin / fintech market?  A well-polished business writer, social media guru, and all around workhorse? I'd love to talk!  My name is Andrew Thomas, and I'm a junior at Boston College majoring in finance and information systems.  I'm the co-founder and president of the BC Bitcoin Club, and for the past year, I've curated all of the news summaries, job postings and events you see "below the fold" in the Daily Bit.  As lead editor, I've helped TBI double his subscriber base and triple his twitter following, but in the coming months, I hope to hand over the reins to my replacement as I begin an internship in financial services. Please email me at [email protected] if you think I'd be a good fit for a position at your company! For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulous and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29)  Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the Berlin and New York events with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits U.S. Announces Third Bitcoin Auction http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2015/02/18/u-s-announces-third-bitcoin-auction/ Yesterday, the United States Marshals Service (USMS) announced its third bitcoin auction, which will be held on March 5th.  The USMS will auction 50,000 bitcoins, worth nearly $12 million, seized from the illicit, now defunct online marketplace Silk Road.  The most previous auction featured 11 registered bidders and a bitcoin price around $370, the price currently sits around $235.  The auction will consist of 10 blocks of 2,000 bitcoins and a second series that will feature 10 blocks of 3,000 bitcoins.  Bidders will be allowed to participate in both series.   Dell Expands Bitcoin Support for Online Purchases to Canada and the U.K. http://venturebeat.com/2015/02/19/dell-expands-bitcoin-support-for-online-purchases-to-canada-and-the-u-k/ Today Dell announced that it's bitcoin payment support for online purchases will now support purchases in the UK and Canada.  The move will make Dell the largest merchant to accept bitcoin internationally.  In July, Dell launched a US pilot to accept bitcoin for online purchases, which was largely successful.  The expansion was made possible thanks to a strong partnership with bitcoin payment processor, Coinbase.   Super Size Me Director, Morgan Spurlock Explores Life on Bitcoin in New CNN Special http://www.coindesk.com/super-size-director-explores-life-bitcoin-new-cnn-special/ Tonight at 9pm ET CNN will feature another episode of "Morgan Spurlock Inside Man," which will feature Spurlock examining all the essential elements of bitcoin and living off the currency for a week. During tonight's episode Spurlock will be buying bitcoin at the New York City Bitcoin Center, setting up machines at a bitcoin mine, and purchasing a fake rolex on the now-defunct Silk Road 2.0 online black marketplace.   Hardware Wallet Startup Ledger Closes €1.3 Million Seed Round http://www.coindesk.com/hardware-wallet-startup-ledger-closes-e1-3-million-seed-round/ Ledger, a Bitcoin hardware wallet startup has raised €1.3m ($959,000) in a seed found led by XAnge Private Equity, a French venture capital fund.  In December of 2014, Ledger launched its first product, the Nano Wallet, a bitcoin hardware wallet focused on ease-of-use, affordability and security.  Ledger plans to use the funding to improve and expand its product offerings while securing more customers.   Michael Arrington Gives "Zero Stars" to Bitcoin App Circle http://bostinno.streetwise.co/2015/02/18/circle-bitcoin-app-michael-arrington-gives-negative-review/ Michael Arrington, the TechCrunch/CrunchFound founder was not impressed with Circle's app, stemming from a frustrating experience he had with the company.  Arrington revealed that Circle suspended his account while they were verifying his information, and failed to alert him ahead of time.  Josh Hawkins, the VP of marketing at Circle, admitted that Mr. Arrington's experience with Circle "resulted in a very poor customer experience."  The Boston startup to reach out to Mr. Arrington apologizing for the inconvenience and took accountability for the slip up.   Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Bitcoin Is Worth at Least $0.25

I think we are pretty terrible at pitching bitcoin the currency to intelligent newcomers.   So shockingly bad, in fact, that it's almost like we are short selling the currency with our turns of phrase.  We’ve largely satisfied the appetite of those in the sweet spot of the libertarian-goldbug-technologist-pioneer Ven diagram with our "digital gold” analogy, and we now need to hone a new, more sophisticated sales pitch. Consider a scenario that you probably encounter once a week...   Someone from Wall Street or Silicon Valley comes up to you and says: "I love the blockchain, but hate bitcoin."  If you've been in the industry for a while, you probably take one second to marvel at the fact that the tech's potential is now treated as a near-given (seriously, a massive departure from 18 months ago), and then proceed to explain why it is unreasonable for your skeptical friend to feel such conflicting emotions, because...well...a blockchain technically needs its native token to have value.  Otherwise the tech just won't work, you say.  Very well put. But then a strange thing happens.  You talk about where bitcoin is accepted, what applications are being built and how bitcoin will look in five or ten years if only it successfully disrupts X, Y, and Z industries once it is properly regulated / legitimized.  Yet you never build the bridge that explains exactly how bitcoin goes from an online drug currency to a remittance and correspondent banking killer.  You will excitedly add that bitcoin is either going to the moon or zero (thanks for the insight, genius), but never talk about what the transition process from current prices to boom or bust looks like.  The bust scenario is highly unlikely to be a straight line to zero!  If even our blockchain-loving, bitcoin-denying imbecilic friend understands the underlying tech is valuable, it seems logical that we probably won't ever see all blockchain-based native tokens go to zero at the same time even if bitcoin itself tanks.  You might not point out this subtlety, but it's important. [TBI Note: By "you", I mean me.  I've been repeatedly guilty of this type of pitch.  I'm projecting.] These are two key insights, I think.  1) We need to build a better "financial bridge” to demonstrate that there is some fundamental value of the bitcoin currency.  2) We need to start talking about how native blockchain tokens have a certain theoretical collective minimum market cap based on the demand for the underlying tech at a given time.   As usual, I have a very bad idea for how to fix the pitch: we need to definitively make the case for bitcoin at a quarter. Not a quarter of its all-time high (around today's price), or a quarter of its current price (around today's lowest marginal cost of mining), but a US-backed, George Washington fiat-coin quarter price. For now, let's assume that anything above that level (one thousandth of the current price) is pure bubbly mania.  The good news here is that we can finally and convincingly establish a non-zero lower-bound for bitcoin or some future superior blockchain token.   Last year, BitPay claimed that it was processing $1 million per day in bitcoin transactions.  Things seem to be slowing down a bit, so let's assume that all of the bitcoin payment processors in the world now process $1 million in a given day.  Next, let's assume that at least as much volume takes place in peer-to-peer transfers (e.g. settling a bar tab, paying a foreign freelancer, sending tips or faucets, exchanging bitcoin in person, etc.).  After all, it's still easier to send money to another receptive individual than it is to pay at the point of sale or online.  Finally, the highest estimates that I've seen for Silk Road's at-the-time-of-purchase gross annual revenue was $35-40 million.  Let's assume that in the absolute worst case (from a brand perspective) the total black market bitcoin volumes are 10x that Silk Road estimate.  With these assumptions, we're looking at $3-4 million of bitcoin changing hands per average day in non-trading volume.   That actually jives with what we know to be true about the total daily USD-bitcoin volume.  Even if over 90% of daily volume is related to day trading, our $3-4 million of non-trading volume assumption fits, and actually sounds pretty sustainable and conservative. Remember, we're just talking about beta uses of blockchain technology here - currency for enlightened tinkerers, paranoid cryptoanarchists, and yes, gamblers, pot dealers and porn addicts.  We're not even talking about the very realistic, but still unrealized 1.0 stuff, where venture-backed remittance services, enterprise-grade cross-border payment processors, fx settlement/clearing houses, and developing economy mobile money "banks" become real world things and burst out of beta. How much of this ephemeral bitcoin crap do we need to actually run the beta tech?  Theoretically, we only need enough to run 10 minutes worth of transactions, but in reality, most people who like bitcoin for its speed, low cost and anonymity benefits would probably be willing to hold their tokens for the day or longer. Moreover, in a world where it takes 2-3 days to cash in or out of bitcoin because of the existing financial system's limitations, a one day average holding period is friggin' lightning and probably conservative.  (Even if every business and consumer using bitcoin cashed in and out instantaneously, the intermediary services they would need to use to do these real-time conversions would still be subject to banking delays.) So making the unrealistic assumption that the same bitcoins turn over at the ridiculous rate of once per day, in order to satisfy 100% of the daily non-trading volume (remember, we're completely ignoring the greedy speculators for now), one bitcoin out of the 14,000,000 in circulation would be worth... $0.25. But, hold on: we know there have been high-volume days in the past twelve months where a $0.25 bitcoin couldn't possibly satisfy that day's demand for the bitcoin payment rails.  What would happen if smokers needed to transact $10-15mm of bitcoin for their weed this April 20th?  Again, assuming the entire bitcoin money supply turns over once that day (it wouldn’t…ever), we’d need at least a $1.00 bitcoin in order to fill all of the orders.  So it’s clear the monetary base (and thus the price per bitcoin) needs some sort of buffer between high dollar volume days and average days.   If we know that today's $0.25 bitcoin could be worth $1.00 on 4/20 (or Cyber Monday, for the straight-laced folk), many of us are going to “hoard" our stakes.  In currency terms, we'd call this $0.75 delta the "reservation demand" and the $0.25 the "transactional demand" for bitcoin. At this point, anyone who is a believer in blockchain tech and the bitcoin payment rails (a large majority of those familiar with bitcoin, I think) shouldn't have such a hard time accepting that there is at least $0.25 of transactional demand per bitcoin for even the somewhat sparse use cases for today's rails. Getting from worthless to $0.25 is the key leap, I think.  And it's time we start embracing that starting point and start building out the financial model for bitcoin's "stock" beyond that. Tomorrow, I'll discuss why I think it is even easier to make the case for bitcoin's ~$240 "reservation demand" than it is for its $0.25 "transactional demand".  Stay tuned... For Entrepreneurs The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/. Events MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th! This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin. Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulous and many, many more. Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future. The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals. For more information visit mitbitcoinexpo.org Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29)  Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the Berlin and New York events with code TBIDAILY. See you there! Jobs, Jobs, Jobs Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed) -Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team. -Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco) -Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected] Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Largest "universal services" bitcoin company. -Open positions: Security Engineer, Software Engineer (2-3 years mobile product development), Regulatory Compliance Investigator, (1 year conducting SAR investigations) -Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/) BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed) -The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company -Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer -Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected] Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed) -Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.           -Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant. -Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected]. Elliptic, London (VC-backed) -Full-service bitcoin custodian. -Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers. -Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com Today's Tid Bits Check back tomorrow, Idiot. Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])

[two-bit-idiot]

Bitcoin in France

Today an update from France, the home of 67 million people and the fifth largest economy in the world.  Guest contributor Sandrine Ayral has been involved in the Parisian startup ecosystem for the past several years, working for startups, a VC fund and TheFamily, a local startup accelerator before diving into Bitcoin last February.  She worked on Coinbase‘s remote team for a few months, before joining the founding team of NeuCoin in June 2014. Enjoy... "Bitcoin in France” | Sandrine Ayral, co-founder Neucoin France has never been particularly famous for its welcoming stance towards innovation, a fact French entrepreneurs are regularly reminded of: last January

Uber had to ferociously battle

the Parisian taxi lobby. In May, Arnaud Montebourg, France’s previous Minister of Economy, killed

Daylimotion’s acquisition

by Yahoo. Not long after his election, François Hollande proposed a

tax reform

plan that boiled down to a 60% income tax rate for entrepreneurs selling their company. Despite all this, France is experiencing a

rebirth of its tech scene

, and 2014 began as an interesting era for Bitcoin as well.

France was the first European country to welcome a Bitcoin center. La Maison du Bitcoin opened its doors in May, originally to incubate startups working on Bitcoin projects, to educate French people through various events – and to allow anyone to buy Bitcoin via a Bitcoin ATM. The inauguration of the center was closely followed by a Bitcoin hackathon, sponsored by Coinbase and Paymium - a French company offering an exchange, wallet and merchant tools.

La Maison du Bitcoin’s founders, BTChip and Chronocoin launched together a multisig hardware wallet, the Ledger Nano Wallet, focused on ease-of-use, affordability, and of course, security. It received quite enthusiastic feedback from the Bitcoin community - you can check Coindesk’s article on this. Also worth mentioning, Brawker built a marketplace that matches people who want to buy Bitcoin with others who want to purchase items online with Bitcoin. Like Purse.io, the shoppers gain a discount by using the platform – but their service isn’t limited to Amazon. They’re doing a particularly amazing job on fraud prevention. A big September news event was the deal Paymium signed with showroomprive.com, a major online fashion retailer, making it the first big European merchant to accept Bitcoin. For this year, I’d keep an eye on Challenger Deep, a Bitcoin venture started by Criteo’s former COO, Pascal Gauthier, that will be coming out of stealth mode soon.

Regulation-wise, the French Senate held hearings last January, inviting a few Bitcoin experts to share their knowledge on the subject. This event was followed in July by the publication of a

report on the subject

, which underlined the digital currency’s risks, its “volatility, its anonymity and its lack of legal guarantee”, but also acknowledged Bitcoin’s potential benefits and opportunities as a “payment system and [...] a decentralized validation protocol”, reckoning that Bitcoin is secure, its usage vast and the transaction costs low. As another encouraging note, Michel Sapin, the French Minister of Economy, declared last July that he would encourage his European counterparties to vote a text making purchases of Bitcoins exempt from value added tax (VAT) – this still remains to be voted however. Despite the above-mentioned encouraging elements, the French Bitcoin ecosystem remains extremely small – especially when compared to London’s more welcoming scene. French VC funds’ involvement in Bitcoin is literally non-existent so far, not necessarily due to a lack of interest or excessive risk-averseness of French VC funds in general. True enough, the Bitcoin startup deal flow is simply pretty limited for now. Because their LPs are banks, a few VCs also refuse to even consider Bitcoin startups’ decks. Still, Thomas France, La Maison du Bitcoin’s founder, told me: “we will see the first French VC investments in French Bitcoin startups in 2015, I’m sure.” So soon enough! A quick look at the 2014 publications around Bitcoin in the main national newspapers shows there is a common misunderstanding of Bitcoin: instead of presenting what the technology really does - removing costly middlemen in any type of transaction by operating a decentralized public and secure ledger - the media almost always present bitcoin as a conveniently untraceable digital currency for terrorists, money-launderers or drug dealers. Most Bitcoin-related headlines cover Silk Road, the Onymous affair or similar stories, feeding a pretty tinted view to more mainstream spheres. This discourse was sadly picked up by a police communiqué after the

the closure of an illegal Bitcoin exchange

in July. According to the police, Bitcoin and digital currencies are very likely to spark criminal activity because of “the lack of transparency around their existence and their functioning” - a fundamental misunderstanding of what Bitcoin is and (perhaps more troubling) a lack of curiosity from enforcers leading to unavoidable misconceptions.

Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any strong organization to push a more accurate vision of Bitcoin and its underlying protocol to French journalists and regulators - despite La Maison du Bitcoin’s opening. Some efforts were made by Paymium during the Senate hearings back in January, but France is still in dire need of a credible association promoting Bitcoin and acting as the industry’s spokesperson.

2014 concluded with a conference held by the ACPR, an authority monitoring the activities of banks and insurance companies in France. The conference confirmed that France would follow the European Banking Authority

(EBA)’s recommendations

issued in July, which states that the regulatory body is aware it needs to develop a “substantial body of regulation”, which is going to take some time. In the meantime, its immediate response is to “discourage credit institutions, payment institutions and e-money institutions from buying, holding, or selling virtual currencies” - not exactly helpful for digital currency businesses seeking banking partners. More worrying is that the ACPR’s rendering of the EBA report showed a clear lack of objectivity around Bitcoin and its potential risks and opportunities: while 70 risks where presented, only a single “potential” benefit was listed: lower transaction costs. Here’s hoping the EBA’s long-term regulatory guidance will yield more clarity.

There is much more to do for Bitcoin to pick up in France. We need more entrepreneurs focusing on blockchain projects, and more VC funding to develop products and services that will encourage mainstream adoption. But the movement has started!

For Entrepreneurs

The MIT E-Lab is a well established (20+ year) program that helps startups by matching them with MIT & Harvard business school students for a semester.  The E-Lab is now looking for cryptocurrency related startups at various stages, so apply if you think this could help your efforts. (You don't need to be local, but a c-level exec has to be in Cambridge frequently.)  To apply, or for more info on E-Lab visit http://elab.mit.edu/.

Events

MIT Bitcoin Expo - March 7-8th

Get your tickets today -- MIT is hosting its second annual Bitcoin Expo on March 7th and 8th!

This premiere student-run event, hosted by the MIT Bitcoin Club and Wellesley Bitcoin Club, features two days of panels and presentations from leading professionals and academics in the cryptocurrency space. You’ll hear from engineers who maintain and develop the core Bitcoin protocol, academics on the cutting edge of cryptocurrency research, and founders and executives of some of the hottest million-dollar startups in bitcoin.

Join hundreds of students and professionals as we learn about the most recent and upcoming legal and technical developments in Bitcoin. Delve into the heart of recent developments with experts like Gavin Andresen, Jeremy Allaire, Adam Ludwin, Charlie Lee, Constance Choi, Peter Todd, Jerry Brito, Joi Ito, Andreas Antonopoulous and

many

, many more

.

Day One will provide insight into the Bitcoin mainstreaming process as well as the legal and security challenges for Bitcoin companies to overcome.  Day Two will detail the inner workings of bitcoin and the new technologies that are emerging as the industry develops.  Join us as we strive to understand the present and build the future.

The event is free for students and only $125 for 2 days for professionals.

For more information visit

mitbitcoinexpo.org

Inside Bitcoins Conference and Expo - Berlin (Mar. 5-6), and New York (Apr. 27-29)  Inside Bitcoins is the largest bitcoin and blockchain technology focused event series worldwide. At each event you'll hear about the latest challenges, trends, and opportunities in the industry from experts including Chris Odom, Co-Founder and CTO, Monetas; Marshall Swatt, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, Coinsetter; Dan Morehead, Founder & CEO, Pantera Capital Management; Gil Luria, Managing Director, Wedbush Securities; and more.  Plus, TBI Daily readers get 10% off the

Berlin

and

New York

events with code TBIDAILY. See you there!

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

Bitnet, San Francisco, Belfast, London (VC-backed)

-Leading digital commerce platform & former Visa team.

-Open positions: Engineering (Customer Success, Lead UI, Product, DevOps), Sales Director (EMEA), Sales Engineer (San Francisco)

-Check out Bitnet (https://bitnet.io/careers.html) and email [email protected]

Coinbase, San Francisco (VC-backed)

-Largest "universal services" bitcoin company.

-Open positions:

Security Engineer

,

Software Engineer

(2-3 years mobile product development),

Regulatory Compliance Investigator

, (1 year conducting SAR investigations)

-Check out Coinbase (https://www.coinbase.com/careers/)

BitGo, Palo Alto (VC-backed)

-The leading Bitcoin multi-sig security company

-Open positions: Back-end / Front-End / iOS / Security Engineers, UX Designer

-Check out BitGo (www.bitgoinc.com/jobs) and email [email protected]

Bolt, San Francisco (VC-backed)

-Stealth startup focused on consumer applications of Bitcoin.          

-Open positions: Security Engineer, Ruby Engineer, UI/UX Designer, Executive Assistant.

-Check out Bolt (bolt.com) and email [email protected].

Elliptic, London (VC-backed)

-Full-service bitcoin custodian.

-Open positions: Data Scientists and Front-end developers.

-Learn more and apply at elliptic.workable.com

Today's Tid Bits

Bitcoin Foundation's Patrick Murck to Advise Lending Network BTCJam

http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-foundations-patrick-murck-advise-lending-network-btcjam/

Executive director of the Bitcoin Foundation, Patrick Murck has joined the board of advisors of BTCJam, a bitcoin-powered peer-to-peer lending network.  Murch took over as executive director of the foundation following Jon Matonis' resignation last October.  

New York Councilman: Bitcoin Could Save City Millions

http://www.coindesk.com/new-york-city-bitcoin-save-millions/

Last Thursday, Mark Levine, a New York City councilman, introduced a bill petitioning the city to accept bitcoin as payment for fines and fees.  In order for the bill to pass it will have to gather co-sponsors, then head to a vote with the city's technology committee and eventually a full vote in the city council.  Levine, a democrat from the 7th District in northern Manhattan, is optimistic that the bill will be passed by the end of June, stating that city would save lots on avoiding fees charged by payment card providers.  

Policy Experts Talk Transparency in Bitcoin at Foreign Affairs Event

http://www.coindesk.com/policy-experts-talk-transparency-bitcoin-foreign-affairs-event/

Last Thursday in New York, three expert panelists spoke about the emerging digital currency protocols and the potential they have to transform payments at a day-long meeting hosted by the Foreign Affairs journal.  Ann Shere Wallwork, a senior counselor for strategic policy at the US Department of the Treasury, Karen Gifford, the chief compliance officer at Ripple Labs, and John Beccia, general counsel and chief compliance officer at Circle, all spoke.  The discussion centered around digital currency and it's current rules-based, risk-based regulation.  

Two Bitcoin ATMs Stolen in Amsterdam

http://cointelegraph.com/news/113503/two-bitcoin-atms-stolen-in-amsterdam

A thief stole two of Amsterdam's Bitcoin-ATMs and as of yet, the offenders have not been caught.  One machine is a two-way BitAccess BTM, worth about $10,000, and the other is a one-way General Bytes BATMtwo, worth around $3,000.  The BitAccess BTM was placed in a small Thai restaurant named Waries Thai Food, and the other was located at 't Hofje van Wijs, a bar in the Red Light District.  As of yet, the offenders have not been caught.  

Virginia Law Firm Now Accepts Bitcoin for Services

http://cointelegraph.com/news/113501/southwest-virginia-law-firm-now-accepts-bitcoin-for-services

A law firm in Southwest Virginia that provides estate planning and administration services, Anderson, Desimone & Green, is now accepting bitcoin as a payment method from clients.  Coinbase will be processing the bitcoin transactions.  Chris Desimone, president of the area law firm and estate planning attorney, believes bitcoin will soon be a standard in the marketplace.  

Have a tip or feedback?  Email me!  ([email protected])