i have to say you got a very fast donkey ...

now we understand why people sent us wire slips while we never asked for any

wow! seriously??

hope it helps

best on desktops. should work on iPads too 

LakeTrader is a LakeBTC tool

we support bank wire and Ripple network too

New York’s Department of Financial Services is extending the comment period for its bitcoin regulation proposal by a month and a half after getting deluged by thousands of comments and requests for more time. Even extending the deadline until October 21 isn't enough according to some of the letters its received. The blizzard of interest from people and organizations on a national scale shouldn't have been a surprise to the regulators though. What the state of New York, with all its financial weight, decides to do about regulating bitcoin and other cryptocurrency, has huge implications for the technology on a national scale.

The frenzy of commenting began almost immediately after superintendent of financial services Benjamin Lawsky announced the proposed regulations back in July. The draft rules cover the usual arenas of money laundering, security and protecting consumers, requiring companies involved in virtual currency to get a "BitLicense" to operate in New York and holding them accountable for customers. It's a staggering advance in what until now has been mainly a piecemeal kind of regulation. Perhaps understandably, a letter from the Bitcoin Foundation was among those asking for more time.

"With some important, sophisticated exceptions, the Bitcoin community is not well-versed in New York financial services law or regulation," the Bitcoin Foundation wrote. "It takes time to gather the meanings of legal terms of art and to compare them with emerging technologies, processes and business models in the Bitcoin world."

There's been very mixed reactions to the proposed framework by bitcoin users and companies. People who like crytpocurrencies precisely because of its lack of regulation don't like the idea of any new rules. Others may approve or at least accept that bitcoin will be regulated, but think the proposal goes too far and is even stricter for bitcoin companies than the rules for traditional financial institutions.

"We have sought to strike an appropriate balance that helps protect consumers and root out illegal activity – without stifling beneficial innovation," Lawsky said in a statement when the rules were announced. "Setting up common sense rules of the road is vital to the long-term future of the virtual currency industry, as well as the safety and soundness of customer assets.


http://inthecapital.streetwise.co/2014/08/21/new-york-bitcoin-comment-frenzy-national-importance/

It has been a great year for merchant adoption with companies like Dell, DISH, Overstock, Expedia and Tiger Direct accepting bitcoin … but it's been a rough year for bitcoin investors.

Bitcoin on Monday hit $435, its lowest level since May. It has dropped about 60 percent from its November 2013 high near $1,200.

Bitcoin investors who bought in at the end of last year or most of this year are feeling the pain. Many heard about bitcoin’s $13 to $1,200 run up last year and wanted to make some quick money. A price drop was not the result they were looking for. One Redditor likened the damage to his net worth to the Hindenburg disaster.

The lows can be attributed to the proposed New York bitcoin regulations and to margin traders.

......

http://www.benzinga.com/tech/14/08/4792856/bitcoin-lows-test-cryptocurrency-investors-resolve

LakeTrader, a professional trading tool
We just launched our brand new trading tool, LakeTrader, earlier today.  https://www.lakebtc.com/p/2644?locale=en

LakeBTC just launched our brand new trading tool, LakeTrader, earlier today. It is a in-browser trading app, with live data, pro charting, OnClick trade, and CoinDesk BPI data integrated.

https://www.lakebtc.com/p/2644




Live Data

LakeTrader takes advantages of our latest websocket real time API. In a single web page, traders can view live orderbook data, trade history, open orders, and analyze historical trade data. As long as you are connected to our server, live data will be streamed to your browser in real time. Note that users can only view historical data after March 1, 2014, when a major database migration was carried out.


Pro Charting

We have integrated the charting lib by Trading View. There're loads of features available -- BTCUSD and BTCCNY charts in 1, 5, 15, 30, 60 minutes, 1 day, 1 week intervals with styles in bars, candle-stick, line, area, etc are provided. You can also draw trend lines, trend angles, pitchforks, gann box, fib retracement, ABCD patterns, Elliott Wave subminuette, and so on. For technical analysis, there are about 60 options to choose from, including MACD and others.

LakeBTC also integrated CoinDesk BPI (Bitcoin Price Index) data, an industry-leading index for bitcoin prcies. To switch to CoinDesk BPI, just click in the ticker box on the top left corner, type in any text, and select CDBPI:USD in the drop down. You will see the chart for 1 day and 1 week resolutions (you may want to swtich the chart type to "Line" for 1 day mode since OHLC prices are missing for each day). You may also compare LakeBTC USD chart with CoinDesk USD chart side by side.


OneClick Trade

Traders can place buy/sell orders by a single mouse click on the screen in our OneClick trade mode. Simply set a default order size (e.g., 0.2 BTC) and a multiplier (e.g., ×5), traders can hover his mouse over the Orderbook and an overlay with buy/sell buttons will appear with the corresponding price. Just click the button and the order will be sent to our server in real time. Once accepted, it will show up in the Open Orders pane in real time. This function is extremely easy to use and it's a great tool for all users, especially those trade frequently.

Or, if you prefer the old fashion trade entry, just click Manual tab, and you can fill in price and amount as you would normally do.

If your order got executed, it will disappear (or change in amount) in the Open Orders pane and show up in the Trade History pane, in real time. Note all numbers shown are before trading commission fees.

If you wish to cancel a single open order or all open orders, it's also as easy as a mouse click and the page will update accordingly.

To summarize, LakeTrader is a full feature real time trading application in your browser -- there's nothing to download and install on your local machine. LakeTrader is still in beta, bug reports/comments/criticisms can be sent to help@LakeBTC.com

About LakeBTC

LakeBTC is a leading bitcoin platform that provides bitcoin trading services. Security, liquidity and service are three strengths that make LakeBTC stand out of the crowd. In addition to technological security measures such as SSL encryption, 2-step authentication, SMS confirmations, LakeBTC team with years of experience in financial industries operates with professional risk management, internal controls, and market surveillance programs that ensure users' fund and personal data are safe and secure.

LakeBTC is one of the Big Four exchanges around the world that determine CoinDesk BPI USD. LakeBTC is also a Gateway Member of International Ripple Gateway Association (IRBA).

Thank you for choosing LakeBTC.com!
LakeBTC Team

Bitcoin fell to its lowest price since May yesterday, after suffering a massive 12 percent drop. And that was just the most recent in a weeks-long descent of the currency. It’s no big surprise, though, bitcoin loyalists still see a silver lining in the crypto-asset they believe could be the next gold standard.

When Mt. Gox collapsed in February many saw it as the beginning of the end of the cryptocurrency, and perhaps, cryptocurrencies generally speaking. Instead though, the the price of bitcoin remained relatively stable, causing others to believe the currency was finally reaching maturity. But then the air started slowly seeping from the balloon.

On June 13 the price fell below $600, on August 14, the price fell below $500, and yesterday on the exchange BTC-e, it briefly fell below $400. Though it's difficult to definitively attach the drops to particular events a few major occurrences have re-sculpted the bitcoin economy in recent weeks.

On July 17, New York State released a proposal for what could end up becoming the first ever tailor-made bitcoin regulations, so-called Bit Licenses, with a potentially prohibitive barrier to startups. So even as mainstream investors like Fred Wilson and Marc Andreessen have thrown large sums of money behind already established bitcoin startups like bitcoin wallet Coinbase, the climate for those just starting out remains daunting.

Then, on August 11, the Federal Government’s influential Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warned users of bitcoin and other virtual currencies about the dangers of hackers, schemes, price-volatility, and lack of government protection in the burgeoning crypto-economy.

...

http://upstart.bizjournals.com/news/technology/2014/08/19/3-recent-events-pushing-the-air-out-of-the-bitcoin.html

Online technology, as this column frequently has noted, presents numerous challenges to attorneys during litigation,1 while managing their firms and marketing their services,2 and in trying to keep up with the newest legal developments and rulings.3 A recent decision in a case of first impression by Judge Katherine B. Forrest of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York highlights how online technology also presents challenges in criminal law enforcement.

The ruling in the case, United States v. Ulbricht, addresses novel legal issues as they relate to the Internet and a criminal defendant's role in purported conspiracies, and the application of federal criminal law for the first time to the alleged online conduct that formed the basis for the government's charges.4 It appears to be the first New York case to directly address Bitcoin currency—a form of virtual payment that recently has been in the news and, with other virtual currencies, is the subject of a recent advisory by the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.5

The Silk Road Case

The government alleged that Ross Ulbricht engaged in conspiracies to enable narcotics trafficking, computer hacking, and money laundering by designing, launching, and administering a website called Silk Road as an online marketplace for illicit goods and services. It characterized Silk Road as "the most sophisticated and extensive criminal marketplace on the Internet," asserting that it operated using software and a network that enabled users to access and use the site anonymously, including by paying for all purchases using Bitcoin.

According to the government, Silk Road functioned as designed, with tens of thousands of buyers and sellers allegedly entering into transactions using the site, violating numerous criminal laws. Over time, thousands of kilograms of heroin and cocaine and malicious computer codes allegedly were bought and sold using Bitcoin. The government alleged that Silk Road, in essence, was designed to operate like a criminal eBay: A seller would electronically post a good or service for sale; a buyer would electronically purchase the item using Bitcoin; the seller then would ship or otherwise provide to the buyer the purchased item; the buyer would provide feedback; and the site operator (i.e., Ulbricht) would receive a portion of the seller's revenue as a commission.

Several months ago, a Southern District grand jury returned a four count indictment against Ulbricht in connection with the design and operation of the Silk Road website.

Count One charged that from in or about January 2011 up to and including October 2013, Ulbricht engaged in a narcotics trafficking conspiracy in that he "designed [Silk Road] to enable users across the world to buy and sell illegal drugs and other illicit goods and services anonymously and outside the reach of law enforcement." It was alleged that Ulbricht "controlled all aspects of Silk Road, with the assistance of various paid employees whom he managed and supervised" and that as "part and object of the conspiracy" Ulbricht and others "would and did deliver, distribute, and dispense controlled substances by means of the Internet" and "did aid and abet such activity" in violation of the law. He allegedly "reaped commissions worth tens of millions of dollars, generated from the illicit sales conducted through the site."
Count Two alleged that Ulbricht's conduct amounted, over time, to his position as a "kingpin" in a continuing criminal enterprise by engaging in a "continuing series of violations" in concert "with at least five other persons with respect to whom Ulbricht occupied a position of organizer, a supervisory position, and a position of management, and from which … Ulbricht obtained substantial income and resources."

Count Three charged Ulbricht with a computer hacking conspiracy by alleging that Ulbricht designed Silk Road as "a platform for the purchase and sale of malicious software designed for computer hacking, such as password stealers, keyloggers, and remote access tools." While in operation, the indictment alleged, the Silk Road website "regularly offered hundreds of listings for such products." According to the indictment, the object of this alleged conspiracy was to "intentionally access computers without authorization, and thereby [to] obtain information from protected computers, for purposes of commercial advantage and financial gain."

Finally, Count Four charged Ulbricht with a money laundering conspiracy and alleged that Ulbricht "designed Silk Road to include a Bitcoin-based payment system that served to facilitate the illegal commerce conducted on the site, including by concealing the identities and locations of the users transmitting and receiving funds through the site."

Ulbricht moved to dismiss, essentially arguing that his alleged conduct could not serve as the basis of a criminal conspiracy.

The Court's Decision

The court denied Ulbricht's motion to dismiss in its entirety. In so doing, the court identified several areas of established criminal law that required novel analysis as to their application in the context of the technology at issue.

First, it found that the alleged design and operation of the Silk Road website could result in a legally cognizable conspiracy in that the alleged sale and purchase of unlawful narcotics and software on Silk Road could, as a matter of law, constitute circumstantial evidence of an agreement to engage in unlawful conduct. Significantly, the court rejected Ulbricht's contention that his conduct was merely as a facilitator, just like eBay, Amazon, or similar websites. The court explained that the indictment did not allege that Ulbricht was criminally liable simply because he was alleged to have launched a website that was—unknown to and unplanned by him—used for illicit transactions. Rather, the indictment alleged that "Silk Road was specifically and intentionally designed for the purpose of facilitating unlawful transactions." This contention, in the court's view, separated Ulbricht's alleged conduct from the mass of others whose websites may be used—without their planning or expectation—for unlawful purposes. The court concluded that administrators of eBay-type sites, who intend for buyers and sellers to engage in lawful transactions, "are unlikely to have the necessary intent to be conspirators," whereas the design and operation of Silk Road could be evidence of Ulbricht's "intent to join" the illegal conspiracies.

The court next addressed when and how agreements between Ulbricht and his alleged coconspirators could arise online. The court applied basic contract principles of offer and acceptance. It explained that as alleged in the indictment, Ulbricht first "offered" to work with others to traffic illegal narcotics and malicious computer hacking, and to launder money by creating and launching a website specifically designed and intended for such unlawful purposes. The court added that, as alleged in the indictment, Ulbricht's "continued operation of the site" evinced an enduring intent to be bound with those who "accepted" his offer and utilized the site for its intended purpose. The court likened these allegations to posting a sign on a worldwide bulletin board that said: "I have created an anonymous, untraceable way to traffic narcotics, unlawfully access computers, and launder money. You can use the platform as much as you would like, provided you pay me a percentage of your profits and adhere to my other terms of service." According to the court, each time someone allegedly "signed up" and agreed to Ulbricht's standing offer, it was possible that, as a matter of law, he or she might have become a coconspirator.

One of the technological differences between this case and others involving alleged conspiracies is that, according to the charges, the alleged conspiracy here was conducted through what were primarily automated, pre-programmed processes. In other words, the government did not allege that this was a situation in which Ulbricht approved or had a hand in each individual transaction that allegedly occurred on Silk Road during the nearly three-year period covered by the indictment. Instead, the government alleged, he wrote (or had others write) certain code that automated the transactions. The court found that, as a legal matter, this automation did not preclude the formation of a conspiratorial agreement. Indeed, the court declared, "whether an agreement occurs electronically or otherwise is of no particular legal relevance."

The court reasoned that although automation might enable a particular transaction to take place, it was the individuals behind the transaction who took the necessary affirmative steps to utilize that automation. The court declared that it was "quite clear" that if there were an automated telephone line that offered others the opportunity to gather together to engage in narcotics trafficking by pressing "1," that "would surely be powerful evidence of the button-pusher's agreement to enter the conspiracy." The court pointed out that automation was effected through a human design; here, Ulbricht was alleged to have been the designer of Silk Road, and as a matter of law, the court ruled, that was sufficient.

Nevertheless, the court acknowledged that there was a difference between Silk Road and a brick-and-mortar entity. The court said that although "mere buyers and sellers" of small quantities of narcotics might not legally be coconspirators if the transactions occurred in the brick-and-mortar world, they "might become conspirators due to the interposition of a website or website administrator." Pointing out that the level of involvement in any transaction by the website would be relevant, the court explained that "[a]cceptance of the terms of service, the payment of commissions, placing Bitcoins in escrow, and other intervening steps involved in the transactions that allegedly occurred on Silk Road could, in this regard, perhaps constitute evidence that Silk Road users entered into an unlawful conspiracy with Ulbricht."

The court rejected other arguments raised by Ulbricht, including that he was an online provider entitled to immunity under the Communications Decency Act of 1996.6 In particular, Ulbrecht argued that the law indicated congressional support "for a free-wheeling nternet, including one in which providers or users of interactive computer services can operate without fear of civil liability for the content posted by others." The court simply ruled that this argument did not preclude the criminal charges brought against him.

Finally, the court addressed an issue of first impression as to whether the requisite statutory elements in Count Four, which charged Ulbricht with participation in a money laundering conspiracy in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1956(h), were present when payment was made by Bitcoins. The court rejected Ulbricht's argument that the use of Bitcoins to make payments on Silk Road could not constitute the "financial transaction" needed for this charge. As the court explained, Bitcoins were alleged to be the medium of exchange—just as dollars or Euros could be—in financial transactions relating to the unlawful activities of narcotics trafficking and computer hacking. The court pointed out that the only value for Bitcoin was in its ability to pay for things, and it decided that the money laundering statute was broad enough to encompass use of Bitcoins in financial transactions.

Conclusion

The court's decision in Ulbricht refused the defendant's request to dismiss the charges. It remains to be seen whether the government will be able to prove its case and, if so, to withstand an appeal. Nevertheless, the application of traditional criminal law to evolving online activities such as those allegedly engaged in by Ulbricht and Silk Road presents prosecutors with new hurdles to overcome, and defense lawyers with new issues to contemplate.




http://www.newyorklawjournal.com/id=1202667035764/Court-Addresses-Bitcoin-Other-Novel-Online-Technology-Issues

Over time, we have hearing about major online retails and businesses’ plans to accept cryptocurrencies as payments. While some of them have already started to accept them as one, few are still planning the revolutionary integrations. eBay is counted among the latters which have been monitoring Bitcoin’s growing adaption from a long time. And now, it has cleared its stance on the matter.

As confirmed by The Wall Street Journal, the ecommerce shark is reportedly meeting several Bitcoin payment processing companies in regards to integrate the digital currency payments on its subsidiary Braintree.

Braintree was acquired by eBay last year in an expensive deal worth $800 million. This payment processing platform is also providing services for other websites including the likes of Github and Uber. This simply means that any sort of Bitcoin integration into Braintree would make its payment options available on multiple online companies. But there are few obstacles as well.

It is speculated that most of the eBay’s meetings with multiple Bitcoin payment processing companies have concluded into nothing. The ecommerce company however is speculated to reach an agreement with Coinbase, as per the WSJ has written in its report. Coinbase currently handles the Bitcoin services of some of the world’s major companies like Dell, Dish, Overstock, Reddit and Expedia.

In the end, the most ultimate hope here is the integration of Bitcoin on eBay and PayPal. There have been numerous reports early regarding this agreement. However, both the companies have always shied away from revealing their plans on the superbly growing Bitcoin. eBay’s decision meanwhile adds some more points to the expanding Bitcoin economy and injects positivity for some really great news in future.


http://www.forexminute.com/bitcoin/ebay-unit-hopeful-adapt-bitcoin-41829

The last 12 months have been barren for forex investors hoping for some currency movements they can base trading strategies on.

Volatility has dwindled from healthy levels in mid-2013 down to 25-year lows in May and July this year.

Several reasons have been put forward for what may be the cause of this dry spell, but the overriding causes appear to be the continually low interest rates set by central banks, increased geopolitical risk and return to growth from major economies (keeping risk low in other assets).



Bitcoin’s nature sets it apart from such outside factors as these. A lack of a central regulator (or base in a national bank) keeps bitcoin separate from interest rate movements and economic recovery. The escalation of tension between any of Russia, America, Israel or the Middle East is unlikely to play out in bitcoin markets.

That has resulted in bitcoin enjoying a starkly different 12 months to more traditional currencies, experiencing a swing worth of over $1,000 before levelling out at somewhere around the $550-$650 mark for the past few months – a comparative drop in volatility, but still unstable when compared to other currencies and markets.



As such, the major movements tend to be associated with major developments in the currency itself. Bitcoin’s growth at the end of 2013 was largely down to a Senate committee ruling on its legitimacy, and dwindling in February around the disastrous fall of Mt Gox.

....


http://www.coindesk.com/lull-forex-volatility-mean-bitcoin/

Payments firm Braintree, a subsidiary of eBay and PayPal, is “in talks” with Coinbase and several other processing companies on the possibility of accepting bitcoin, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Braintree provides payments software for a number of popular mobile applications including Uber, Airbnb, and GitHub.

The company, which was acquired by PayPal for $800m in December last year, was processing up to $12bn in payments annually at the time – $4bn of that via mobile apps. No matter which bitcoin processor Braintree may choose, accepting digital currency would represent another significant step in bitcoin’s lifecycle.

“People familiar with the matter” stressed that any deal would not include either eBay or PayPal accepting bitcoin for now, though senior executives including eBay CEO John Donahoe have at times expressed an interest in ways to accept digital currencies, even describing it as “inevitable”.


http://www.technews.org/paypal-subsidiary-braintree-on-verge-of-accepting-bitcoin/2913734/

Our demand is so strong and the volume went way beyond EgoPay's capabilities. They replenished the reserve several times but it ran out in literally minutes.

EgoPay is working on a long term solution and hopefully it will resolve the issue. They will also extend the 1.5% rate for several months.

We apologize for the inconvenience.

PS. USD deposits via bank wire and Ripple network are also supported.

The coming months are poised to be a big one for Bitcoin and sports. Already, a few different major sports teams have announced that they will be adopting bitcoin payments in some way. NASCAR has been having a long affair with cryptocurrencies. Biggest of all, at least in the United States, is that Bitpay has purchased the rights to a NCAA College bowl game, naming it the Bitcoin Bowl.

But can cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies be fused with sports in a deeper way than advertising and hot dog purchases? Can cryptocurrencies be used to enhance the fan experience in anyway?

The New York Jets have recently announced a new fan reward program, which will reward season ticket holders with points every time they scan a card. The points can be redeemed for exclusive items and experiences only the Jets can offer. Things like autographed memorabilia, tickets to sit in the owner's box, flying with the team to an away game and even Super Bowl tickets.

The aim of the program is to add value to the extremely unpopular PSL policy. PSLs or Permanent Seat Licenses are sold by some high-demand sports teams as a way to reserve the right to buy season tickets. Fans often have to wait for years on waiting lists, and when their numbers are finally called they are expected to shell out thousands to tens of thousands of dollars, for a PSL, which will give them the “right” to purchase season tickets at face value. In the Jets case, the most expensive PSLs cost $25,000 each but the team is hardly alone in selling high priced. The San Francisco 49ers sell their most expensive PSLs for $80,000.

PSLs are often framed as an investment by the top brass at the Jets (and by other teams around the sports landscape that use PSLs). The idea being that season ticket holders can sell tickets of games they don't want to go to in order to make their money back.  PSLs can cost up to six figures on the secondary market, and are never lower than four figures.

There are a few problems with this. First, fans bought the season tickets because they likely wanted to go to those games, with only eight regular season home games played per season in the NFL, there are only a few opportunities to make the PSL money back. Second, when the teams perform poorly (and the Jets have had their fair share of hard seasons) it can be hard to unload those tickets at a price significantly over face value (and remember, PSLs don't stop you from having to pay for the tickets). Third, the team seems to be talking out of both sides of its mouth. Generally, selling tickets anonymously in second hand markets is frowned upon, since those tickets could go to fans of the opposing team.


CoinTelegraph Op-Ed: http://cointelegraph.com/news/112268/op-ed-how-bitcoin-could-change-how-we-interact-with-sports

Bitcoin fell sharply Wednesday, touching lows against the dollar not seen since May.

The drop comes after a stable July for the cryptocurrency, and a strong run that has seen bitcoin hold above $560 since May 26. The slide began on Monday-the same day the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced new warnings about the digital currency-and accelerated Wednesday morning, according to pricing data from CoinDesk.

(CFPB creates complaint center for bitcoin Wild West)

According to CoinDesk, the currency has only once finished the day on more than a 5 percent change since May: Bitcoin rose almost 7 percent on June 30. Its last drop of over 5 percent was on June 12.

At its lows on Wednesday, CoinDesk's price index had fallen more than 6 percent on the day.

Still, some argue that the fall is part of an orderly correction for the notoriously volatile cryptocurrency.

In a blog post for CryptoCoinsNews, Venzen Khaosan argued that technical analysis predicted the current fall, with $525 as an expected bottom. News events, such as the CFPB announcement, he added, have not typically moved the market.


https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/bitcoin-gets-bit-summertime-swoon-180257700.html

offshore CNY is of no practical use at all.

USD is USD, the old green back