Today there is nothing that excites financial markets, and not only this sector but the entire business world, as the theme of cryptocurrency, say experts The Guardian, continuing in their articles argument on this difficult subject. British experts agree that the official regulators of the US financial sector is extremely concerned about the conversion of bitcoins and analogues of this financial product into instruments of speculation. As a consequence, it is not excluded that in the near future in the United States will take measures on toughening of regulation.
As recently as last week, the securities and exchange Commission (SEC), overseer of the us financial market, has issued an official warning stating that the proposals are “virtual” organizations for the sale of digital assets under the Federal Legislation on securities transactions. Volatility digital market increased sharply after the SEC outlined the essence of his position — the sale of instruments issued by the providers of digital services, is comparable with the sale of traditional stock level of risk.
According to the Bank of England, the main financial regulator in the UK, the differences between virtual currencies and traditional currencies like the pound and the dollar remain significant, due to the fact that virtual instruments “replaces the money on a limited scale and for a relatively narrow circle of people.” However, the Bank representative said that the regulator is closely monitoring the development of the market.
The organization that protects the rights of consumers on the British financial market, the Financial Conduct Authority, is also currently exploring the consequences of the spread of virtual currencies, and plans to release the corresponding profile Report before the end of the year.
According to The Guardian, the essence of the claims of the regulators of the virtual currency lies in the fact that such tools are used today more as an investment and not as a method of payment. On the background of a sharp rise in the value of bitcoin and ether, the two most common digital currency, the total volume of the market of cryptographic financial instruments recently exceeded $ 100 billion. USA (76 billion pounds).
Analysts are forced to admit that until recently few people understand cryptocurrency, now more often, and now worldwide, accept payments for goods and services. For example, today a consumer can use bitcoins to buy a Dell computer, and a number of companies selling gift cards in the U.S. allows you to pay with a cryptocurrency such giants as Walmart, Amazon and Nike. In the UK the company selling theatre and concert tickets, Theatre Tickets Direct has recently started to accept bitcoin for shows in the West End, center of the theater and concert life of London. And the UK’s largest online supermarket of craft beer the Honest Brew is already a decent time selling its goods for cryptocurrency. At the other end of the Earth, is a Japanese low-cost Peach Aviation, also recently announced the acceptance of bitcoins, and became Japan’s first airline that accepts virtual currency as payment for tickets. Moreover, according to The Guardian, today, and wages in some places are paid in bitcoins. Experts say that exists a group of buyers of crypto-currencies at specialized currency exchanges, or web sites like eBay, where it sold so-called “miners”.
Bitcoin was invented in 2009 by an anonymous software developer, has released into circulation the first batch of units based on innovative technologies of the distributed register (blockchain), which allows, in chronological order, to record and to have open access to all ongoing transactions.
Buyers and sellers of bitcoin can remain anonymous, but, crucially, all transactions with cryptocurrency transparent and implemented with little cost — unlike taxable commissions transactions through brokers and banks. Just because of this, analysts say, bitcoin is unpredictable so rapidly gained popularity of high-tech companies, seeing in the new tool is a cheap alternative cross-border transfers through major banking institutions. Of course, not without costs, when it was recorded attempts to use innovative currency to purchase drugs online and “laundering” of dirty money. However, according to experts, this process becomes much more controllable.
British experts notice that this year quotes bitcoin and ether all less resembled a currency charts and more — the popular behavior in the stock market sharply up and down depending on investor sentiment. Bitcoin price in a year has tripled in the past six months have doubled last week, reaching $ 2648. US — and this is despite the 20% drop in may and the “collapse” with high 2900 dollarov to 2000 dollars in the last two weeks. Now the blockchain technology that underlies bitcoin is divided into two areas, because the number of bitcoin users being unhappy with the direction of the project, trigger the alternative currency Bitcoin Cash. The new unit, as analysts suggest, will only cost a small part of the “old” bitcoin. A number of analysts today predict that quotes bitcoin can reach $ 6,000. by the end of this year that begins to resemble the classic “bubble” like the Dutch “Tulip fever” of the XVII century.
Last week in Greece was arrested Alexander Vinnik, a Russian citizen, accused of stealing bitcoins at millions of pounds from the citizens that use the cryptocurrency since its inception. Among the stolen bitcoins were also the unit that went missing in the burglary of a failed project online exchange Mt Gox. Winnick appears in the statement of the justice Department as the operator of BTC-e, bitcoin exchange, presumably used since 2011 for money laundering of about $ 4 billion of funds related to various criminal activities — from computer hacking to drug smuggling. U.S. authorities believe that the detainee is associated with the said exchange Mt Gox, located in Japan and ceased operations in 2014 due to computer hacking.
In article newspaper the Guardian, which says that regulators are showing concern about the potential use of cryptocurrencies for illegal purposes, while still not decided how to assess them — as money or financial assets quoted Bank of Russia Chairman Elvira Nabiullina, who believes that cryptocurrencies need to be regulated as a digital asset: “We do not agree that bitcoin is treated as a virtual currency”. In the coming year, according to The Guardian, the Russian regulators plan to accept bitcoin and other crypto-currencies as legitimate financial instruments, and this seems to facilitate the tracking of suspicious transactions.
The us securities Commission under pressure from speculators, offering to recognize bitcoin and similar units as a common tool of investment. The list of lobbyists includes brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, speculators, accusing Mark Zuckerberg stealing their idea of Facebook, and to sue the Creator of a network of 65 million. The brothers have long been known as the beneficiaries of the various companies associated with cryptocurrencies, as well as lobbyists in SEC start-up Fund, the quotations of which will be tied to bitcoin. “Bitcoin is better than gold”, they claim. Advocacy work has been ongoing for three years, but this March, the proposal to permit the Fund was again rejected by the SEC, triggering a drop in the already volatile crypto-currencies quotes. But brothers don’t give up — perhaps the legalization of their ideas, requiring the introduction of a substantial amount of new regulatory acts do not far off.
