Playboy Plus, a Playboy Brand Website, is Now Accepting Bitcoin

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Australian Government Tracks All Bitcoin to AUD Conversions

The Australian government is keeping a close eye on bitcoin, but not on the regulatory front. Rather, it is tracking every conversion from bitcoin intoAustralian dollars, and vice-versa.

The government agency doing the snooping is the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac). The centre is tasked with countering money laundering and terrorist finance, so it is only logical that it would track anonymous transactions.

Tracking bitcoin-related transactions

Austrac CEO John Schmidt told lawmakers that Australia collects data on all international fund transfers, including bitcoin conversions, ZDnet reports.

“At some point, a person will be purchasing bitcoin using Australian dollars, for example, and then if they are dealing in substances or services, will want to convert those bitcoins back into the legitimate currencies of where ever they are, so they can gain the benefit of them.”

This is where it gets interesting. Because the centre gets international transfer instructions, it is possible to identify transactions made by people purchasing bitcoins.

Schmidt added that most countries have the same capability as Australia, but it is unclear whether they use it. He added that some prosecutions have already resulted from intelligence collected by the centre.

The CEO argued that bitcoin is a commodity used to transfer value rather than a legitimate currency. When bitcoins are converted into AUD, Austrac can identify those transactions.

Bitcoin is not a threat, yet

Schmidt also issued a warning that if bitcoin gains more independence from fiat currency it will become more attractive to criminal organizations that need to channel money around. In that case, international cooperation will be necessary, as Schmidt points out:

“Because they will operate on servers in jurisdictions around the world, and use very sophisticated methods to move and hide their identities. It’s when you have the international cooperation [...] that is the answer to being able to stop that criminal behaviour.”

Interestingly, Schmidt pointed out that Austrac is still not able to quantify the size of the bitcoin market in Australia, but he doesn’t see it as a major threat. He pointed out that people are gambling on the prospective value of bitcoin rather than using it for transactions.

“At this point in time, when you consider all the existing threats we face from the criminal perspective, they are not top of the list,” Schmidt concluded.

Australian 100 Dollar Bill image via Shutterstock

Post Source: http://www.coindesk.com/australian-government-tracks-all-bitcoin-aud-conversions/

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BitcoinWallet.com Domain Sold for $250,000

The domain name BitcoinWallet.com has been purchased by Austin, Texas, entrepreneur Alex Charfen for $250,000.

Niko Younts, a media consultant, bitcoin investor and the domain’s previous owner, broke the news via Twitter on 5th February.

Younts, who confirmed the sale to CoinDesk but declined to comment, also noted in the post that he is close to selling the domain BitcoinWallets.com for a similar asking price. The domain asset was a part of the NeverLoseVision.com investment portfolio, a seven-figure incubator portfolio with startup projects and investment domain assets.

A search of the WHOIS domain record-keeping database revealed that Younts is the current owner of BitcoinWallets.com, and that Charfen is the current owner of BitcoinWallet.com.

Who is Alex Charfen?

Founder of the Charfen Institute with his wife Cadey Charfen, Alex Charfen is an established entrepreneur and published author having written books as well as opinion articles for high-profile publications.

Also an accomplished motivational speaker, Charfen has built his career on his personal comeback story. In the 1990s, Charfen worked as at a multinational conglomerate, but lost everything when his investments in real estate were wiped out by the recession and subsequent financial collapse.

Undeterred, Charfen filed for bankruptcy and soon decided he could help the real estate industry learn from the mistakes it made. Charfen launched the Distressed Property Institute as a way to offer REALTORS additional education, and soon started the Charfen Institute, which provides training and educational products.

The company now earns 10.8m annually and placed among the Inc. 5000 in 2013.

Plans for BitcoinWallet.com?

A screenshot of BitcoinWallet.com

At press time, Charfen had not responded to requests for comment about his plans for the website. However, should the entrepreneur decide to launch a bitcoin wallet service, he is likely to find competition from the available desktop, mobile and web wallets.

Existing bitcoin wallet providers such asBlockchain, which recently passed 1 million users, and Coinbase, which raised $25m in its last round of funding, have already established themselves as dominant names in the space.

However, as the bitcoin market continues to grow, it’s not out of the question that the need for more user-friendly wallets, or even specialty types of wallets will emerge, meaning the investment could pay dividends.

What do you think of the purchase? Weigh in with your thoughts below.

Source: http://www.coindesk.com/inc-5000-entrepreneur-buys-bitcoinwallet-com-domain-for-250k/

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Apple Kills Last Bitcoin App

Bitcoin wallets are getting blocked from the App Store

Apple removed the last remaining app used to exchange the digital currency Bitcoin from its App Store on Wednesday.

Blockchain, the bitcoin wallet app, said on its blog that it had no prior warning it would be barred from the store or prompting it to make changes to that app. It said Apple’s only explanation was “unresolved issues.”

Other bitcoin-related apps like Coinbase, Gliph and CoinJar have also been removed from the store. While Bitcoin isn’t illegal, it’s also not recognized as legal currency by governments, TechCrunch notes. This could conflict with section 22.1 of the App Store’s review guidelines, which states that “apps must comply with all legal requirements in any location where they are made available to users. It is the developer’s obligation to understand and conform to all local laws.”

Google’s Android platform still allows developers to create and maintain bitcoin wallet apps.

Source: http://business.time.com/2014/02/06/apple-bitcoin-blockchain-app-store/

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Australian Legal Firm to Accept Bitcoin

By IndiaTimes | February 3, 2014, 4:59 pm IST

WASHINGTON: LegalVision, an Australian legal service provider has reportedly become the first legal organization to allow its customers to pay for services with Bitcoin.

A decentralized digital currency, Bitcoin can be used by users to transfer money on the internet sans the involvement of bank, allowing them to transact with each other directly.

Lachlan McKnight, LegalVision chief executive said that he was interested in using the crypto-currency because it fitted with the online firm's emphasis on efficiency and innovation, PCWorld has reported.

McKnight said that it made perfect sense for the fraternity to start using digital currency as it provided online legal advice and documents.

Source: http://www.indiatimes.com/technology/enterprise/australian-legal-firm-to-accept-bitcoin-126529.html

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Luxury Yacht Service Makes its First Bitcoin Booking

Luxury yacht service The Advantaged Yacht Charter and Sales in Miami Beach has received its first booking paid for in bitcoin.

The company officially began accepting bitcoin in October last year, but only made its first booking, paid for with the digital currency, last week.

The company has a total of 26 boats in Miami Beach which it rents out, starting from $1,200 for four hours up to $18,000 for the most extravagant packages. Each one comes complete with a captain, a stewardess and a fruit and cheese platter.

Their first bitcoin deal came about after Tony Gallippi, owner of payment processorBitPay gave the company a shout out during his opening speech at the North American Bitcoin Conference in Miami.

Jessica Londono, co-owner of The Advantaged Yacht Charter and Sales in Miami Beach, was at the conference, as was her first bitcoin client. She explained:

“[Gallippi] just literally said a small little blurb about us, then my client went on and Googled me, saw the website, saw we accept bitcoin and then called me.”

Londono was able to effortlessly process the transaction for her client’s $2,500 charter using BitPay.

“It was literally the easiest transaction I’ve ever done,” she said. “I’ve co-owned the company for about nine years and this transaction took less than one minute.”

Londono sent her client an email with the contract for his charter and the BitPay address. “It’s so much easier than any credit card transaction I’ve ever done,” she added.

Nominal charges

As well as being a much quicker process, accepting bitcoin is also cheaper for vendors, as payment processors such as BitPay require a nominal charge in comparison to credit card charges. Londono said:

“American Express charges about 3.5%, which we lose out of our profits. Bitcoin is essentially free, depending on what service you use.”

Using bitcoin also makes the booking process simpler for Londono’s clients.

Londono first got into bitcoin in March 2012 through her “Apple genius husband”. Now her company, which also deals in yacht sales, is in the process of completing its first boat sale in bitcoin.

She stresses bitcoin is not simply a get-rich-quick scheme for her; it’s about exposure. Going to networking events like the Miami conference has been an opportunity to meet other eager people within the bitcoin community.

“I go to networking events on a daily basis trying to promote my brand, but it was so refreshing to go somewhere where every single person was so happy to talk to you and explain what they do,” she said.

“Everyone’s so excited about bitcoin that it’s just a pleasure to go ahead and get more involved and have more people be part of the bitcoin community.”

She hopes more vendors in South Florida will start to accept bitcoin payments soon.

“We have so many people with foreign currency that this would be an easy way to just unify us all.”

Source: http://www.coindesk.com/luxury-yacht-service-makes-first-bitcoin-booking/

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Bitcoin ATM in Singapore

Singapore’s First Bitcoin ATM to Arrive in March

A Singapore company is planning to install the island’s first bitcoin ATM by April.

The firm, Bitcoin Exchange, has purchased a Lamassu unit that it expects will arrive mid-March. It plans to install more ATMs if the first unit is well received. Zann Kwan, one of the company’s directors, said:

“The good thing is that the Singapore government has left bitcoin alone. It’s treated like silver or gold, and if you want to [deal in it] it’s at your own risk. The ATM will create a lot more interest in bitcoin.”

According to Kwan, the machine’s location hasn’t been decided just yet. The company is looking for a location inside one of Singapore’s many shopping malls.

Kwan made it clear that the ATM would not charge a fee for each transaction, supplying bitcoin at a premium to market rates instead. She said the company had not decided what exchange it would take its rates from yet.

The Singapore bitcoin economy has been growing, although it’s still mainly driven by early adopters, she added:

“There are a few bars that are accepting bitcoins now, and people are talking about it. But you need a few people to start the ball rolling, then the momentum will pick up.”

Bartini Kitchen

One of the republic’s cryptocurrency-accepting bars is Bartini Kitchen. The cocktail bar and restaurant, located in the heart of the city’s financial district, began accepting bitcoin payments at the end of November.

Several customers have paid for their food and drinks from Bartini Kitchen’s modern European menu in bitcoin since then, according to bartender Amir. He said:

“There’ve been just a few transactions, not many of our customers know about bitcoin. But overall, it’s been a positive response.”

Bartini Kitchen draws a cosmopolitan after-work crowd from the office towers that dominate the skyline in this part of town. The restaurant is part of a group of seven other bars and eateries, including a Japanese restaurant called Mariko’s that also takes bitcoin.

According to Amir, the group’s management are keen bitcoin supporters. Bartini’s mixologists are led by Barnaby Murdoch, a British expat who mixed drinks at London nightspots Kitts, Rudy’s Revenge and Rubicon.

Singapore’s tax authority issued guidelines on how to tax bitcoin back in December, becoming one of the world’s first regulatory institutions to do so. The republic is also the base of digital currency startups, like payment processor GoCoin and Ripple Singapore, a bullion exchange using the Ripple network.

Source: http://www.coindesk.com/singapores-first-bitcoin-atm-due-march/

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Mint personal finance tool embraces Bitcoin, but as an investment - not cash

Las Vegas may not be interested in letting gamblers use Bitcoin, but in yet another sign that the crypto currency is edging into the mainstream, Mint.com now lets you track your Bitcoin wallet. The new feature for the online personal finance tracker integrates exclusively with Coinbase—a popular web-based Bitcoin wallet hosting service.

Mint won’t treat Coinbase wallets as cash, the way it does savings and checking accounts from banks. Instead, Bitcoin is treated as an investment account, sitting alongside mutual funds and stocks.

A Mint user is more Bitcoins as a payment method than other "investments," but Bitcoin’s tendency for wild fluctuation makes it more at home among stocks and bonds. A single Bitcoin hovered around $20 last February and is now worth nearly $800, according toCoinbase.

Coinbase showing the per-Bitcoin price over the past months: That sure is a volatile "currency." 

Mint’s acceptance of Bitcoin as a legitimate part of a person’s financial picture may not have the same impact as major retailers like TigerDirect and Overstock accepting the digital currency. Nevertheless, with more than 14 million users, Mint’s integration is another positive step for wider acceptance of Bitcoin.

“We felt like it was something we couldn’t ignore anymore,” Mint product manager Vince Maniago recently told Venture Beat. “And this is a good time to go out and support the currency as it becomes more legitimate.”

Mint's new Bitcoin integration. (Click to enlarge.)

Countries around the world are split on how to handle Bitcoin. In August, Germany decided to recognize Bitcoin as a financial instrument. China has already banned the crypto currency as has Thailand. More recently, the Canadian government appeared to give Bitcoin the cold shoulder—althoughBitcoin entrepreneurs up north don’t appear to be discouraged by the government’s position.

In the U.S., Washington is still mulling how to deal with Bitcoin , while states such as New York are also grappling with the issue of regulating Bitcoin.

For now, however, Bitcoin remains something of an untamed wilderness where finance and technology meet.

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Legal Online Gambling is Next Major Bitcoin Market

The international online gambling industry is an estimated $30bn market, and growing. More importantly for Bitcoin, it’s a global market that depends on fast, irreversible payments.

Just like a ordinary casino chip in any land-based casino, digital bitcoin provides privacy, immediacy, and payment finality. Unlike most typical consumer purchases (where returns and chargebacks are usually legitimate), a wager is a one-way transaction. Of course, you may be dissatisfied with the outcome, but that does not justify a reimbursement. The online gambling industry has struggled with this fact for years.

Plagued by chargebacks and fraudulent transactions, specialized payment methods and payment companies have sprouted up around the online casino world to address the problem of payment finality.

iGaming and bitcoin

For the first time ever, the world’s largest and most comprehensive trade event in gaming, ICE Totally Gaming 2014, will feature a half-day seminar on bitcoin in the iGaming environment on 4h February. The London-based conference represents every gambling sector: betting, bingo, casino, lottery, mobile, online, and social gaming.

“We are now witnessing the long-awaited arrival of mainstream online casinos into the bitcoin universe.”

Organized by Gran Via’s Willem van Oort, the seminar features two extraordinary panels: ‘Regulatory Aspects’ and ‘Bitcoin’s Competitive Edge’. I will also be speaking on the evolution and future of bitcoin as a new monetary unit.

Moderated by iGaming attorney David Gzesh, the regulatory panel will assess the compliance challenges in dealing with bitcoin payment processing applications, including currency conversion, reduced transaction costs, payment finality, Know Your Customer rules, and coin management techniques.

Panelists include; Stuart Hoegner, managing director at Gaming Counsel PC; Steve Beauregard, CEO and founder ofGoCoin; and Michael Ellen, director of licensing and strategy at Alderney Gambling Control Commission.

The second panel of the day focuses on the competitive advantages offered by bitcoin in the iGaming industry and will explore potential for new games, new jurisdictional regions, and unique investment opportunities on the horizon.

Stellar panelists include; Esteban van Goor, indirect tax lawyer at PwC; Ivan Montik, CEO and founder of Softswiss; Erik Voorhees, founder of SatoshiDice; Brock Pierce, managing director at Clearstone Global Gaming Fund; Jiten Melwani, founder of Bitgame Labs; and Gabriel Sukenik, director at Coinapult.

Into the mainstream

We are now witnessing the long-awaited arrival of mainstream online casinos and betting establishments into the bitcoin universe. This is the beginning of the second-generation bitcoin gambling sites – the first generation exemplified by sites like SatoshiDice, BitZino, and Seals With Clubs.

CoinDesk reported on Wednesday that Malta-registered casino Vera&John has become the first of the major licensed and regulated online casinos to accept bitcoin deposits. The gaming operator accepts inbound customer payments which are then processed and converted into euros via Panama-based Coinapult service.

Following a trend common among existing online poker sites like WinPoker, Vera&John will only permit wagering in national currency units. The strategy of utilizing bitcoin only as a customer payment transfer mechanism eliminates the exchange rate risk for the operator and the player.

Alternatively, if the player uses bitcoin for deposit, betting, and withdrawal, then the exchange rate risk stays with the player. Examples of that approach include CloudBet and CoinBet.

Sports betting site Cloudbet claims to have revolutionized the online betting experience by introducing the world’s most advanced bitcoin betting platform accessible from desktop and mobile devices. Users can browse an intuitive, elegant site to place immediate and discreet bets on any world event – at zero fees.

CloudBet currently deploys 100% offline cold storage for all bitcoin assets and the site has received excellent reviews.

In addition, Costa Rica-registered CoinBet offers casino gaming, poker, and sports betting all under a simple email registration with password. CoinBet claims to be the first legitimate, licensed entity to re-enter the real money online gambling space since Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars, and Absolute Poker all had their sites shut down by the US Department of Justice in April 2011. However, that particular claim may actually go to Costa Rica-registered Infiniti Poker.

Unlike other regulated gambling jurisdictions issuing licenses, Costa Rica does not require operators to obtain and verify the identity of its players. On the policy of accepting US players, John Bauer, senior vice president of gaming at CoinBet, proudly emphasized:

“Look, to take away a person’s fundamental right to spend their money on whatever they choose is wrong, unconstitutional, and without question, an un-American thing to do.”

He continued: “We are not here to engage in a legal debate, we are here to serve up the very first legitimate workaround to the complex online gambling laws in this US market. We are returning to Americans their freedom to choose and giving them their power back!”

Internet gambling in the US operates in a legal grey area. Other gaming operators in the near future may come to appreciate Bauer’s statement because the US jurisdiction has yet to see a clarifying test case in the matter of bitcoin-only wagering without conversion.

Source: http://www.coindesk.com/legal-online-gambling-next-major-bitcoin-market/

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