Morrex is in very beginning, looks OK but volume is at few BTC per month.

BTC-e fits profile of obscure company described in this thread, no contact data, no address, no fuck all. Even worse, search on Internet produces tons of complains where people lost their BTCs or money dealing with them. They are in Bulgaria or who knows where?

I buy fair amount of stuff from Internet on-line sellers. Unless seller is visibly recognizable and reputable (Staples, Amazon ...) I always look for ABOUT US or CONTACT page. If there is no one or there is no physical address shown that is a first red flag for me. Second red flag is if there is no phone number and/or no e-mail address but on-line form as only way to communicate with whoever is running it.

More checking would include WHOIS check and Google maps if there is address shown. I almost never get to that point, I am gone already. It is clear that site is set to send-us-the-money-and-go-away mode of operation. I myself is in business for last 24 years with WEB site showing: phone number, fax number, e-mail address, physical address, about company. Any call between 8:00 and 19:00 EST is answered by live person immediately. All this set to sell security products. We handle customers credit cards, provide receipt for every purchase and answer e-mails within minutes they arrive.

Now, by same token, can anybody explain why Bitcoin exchange(s) that handle millions of people's hard cash, acting and trying to pretend to be a banking operation can be in business even for one day and lack all above I just listed? How is that even possible? There is only one answer that comes to mind: they are hiding into Internet cloud and obscurity because one day everybody and money will disappear with no trace. We'll read on this forum or world news that yet another BTC exchange bit the dust and investors money is gone. Standard excuse: "Hackers did it!"

Hi there,
I am in Canada and have account with Virtex. Not very satisfied with them, mostly because of high trading fees so for last 2 weeks I am trying to open account with Bitstamp. They proved to be major pain in the ass. I already sent them scans of all kinds of documents proving that I am who I am and live at address I live at. In Canada there are only 2 possible photo IDs, passport and driver's license where only driver's license shows black on white correct and latest address.
Not good enough for Bitstamp. They want something else and I have impression that even they are not clear with what they want because when I send them my credit card statements, bank statements again it's not good enough. WTF?

Anyway this opens new can of worms; I want to send my hard cash to people who don't want to be found, I am stupid or what? Google searches reveal scam city practices your mom told you to avoid at all costs:

They are based in Slovenia (EU) but there is no address or phone number. Then they are based out of UK. People found address to be simple forwarding address. Phone number is nowhere on the site. You can communicate with them only through on-line forms. Of course, only clear thing posted there is where to send money to, everything else is obscured. Obviously those people don't want to be found and contacted. They are hiding something and yet handling millions of dollars of other people's money.

Reminds me of Flexcoin from Alberta, Canada that recently went belly up. Only then it was found that it's single guy running it almost literally from garage, having PO box for "company address", "exchange" running software was somebody's trial and reject ... and more. Why things like that have to surface only after people lose all their bitcoins or cash? I am sure now some people will jump to defend Bitstamp but you tell me what kind of company, even in developing world does not have physical address (that you can actually walk into), telephone number (that you can actually call and get person to answer and talk to you), published e-mail address (that actually gets monitored and answered), corporate or bank structure (that is actually present and functioning)?

Last picture that comes to mind is US Mt. Gox crook walking in Tokyo as free man, holding coffee cup and laughing at US reporters 
   

Don't know, read it on http://www.marketwatch.com, link is right in the middle, NEED TO KNOW section

Many major Wall Street banks are trying to understand bitcoin, the virtual currency that has gained interest in the last few years, and how it could change the global payment system, say industry experts.

BloombergA twenty-five bitcoin
“What we have learned is that many of the banks have individuals and teams now focused on getting to know bitcoin and how it impacts the business,” said Barry Silbert, founder and CEO of SecondMarket, which is working on creating a U.S.-based bitcoin exchange and is an investor in Bitcoin companies.

Silbert was speaking at a panel discussion at the MarketWatch Investing Insights event “Bitcoin: Boom and Bust” late Tuesday in New York.

Banks are trying to understand what a digital-currency world looks like from an infrastructure perspective, said Silbert.

Bitcoin is a decentralized virtual currency that has been trumpeted as a faster and cheaper alternative to existing payments systems and has attracted the interest of high-profile venture capitalists. Some even say it has the potential to be a widely used currency. But it isn’t regulated and a prominent bitcoin exchange shut down last month after hackers stole all its customers’ bitcoins, leaving users with little recourse and raising concerns about security.

On Friday, Japan’s government said bitcoin isn’t a currency or a financial product and will be treated like other goods and services. Prices of bitcoin, meanwhile, have swung from $13 in early 2013 to above $1,000 in November and back down to around $625 on Friday.

So far, Bank of America Corp. BAC -0.12% , J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM -0.52% , Citigroup Inc. C -0.79% , Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS -0.91%  and Wells Fargo & Co. WFC -0.04%  have published reports on bitcoin for clients. Morgan Stanley has not.

J.P. Morgan analyst John Normand writes: “For corporates, bitcoin’s appeal is two-fold: no or low transaction costs from a peer-to-peer payments system, and potential brand recognition from trialing an innovative technology.”

Bank of America analysts say bitcoin may emerge as a serious competitor to traditional money-transfer providers.  “As a medium of exchange, Bitcoin has clear potential for growth, in our view,” they add.

Wells Fargo hosted a panel on virtual currency in January that looked at bitcoin’s viability, compliance and future. Goldman Sachs included a panel on digital currency as part of a global macro conference on Thursday.
“If payments or transactions can be done cheaper, there is an incentive for entrepreneurs and financial firms to get involved,” said Steven Englander, Citigroup’s global head of G10 FX strategy.

Financial firms have showed interest in key areas such as whether bitcoin is an investment opportunity, a commodity to be traded or a currency to be converted for clients.

A number of commodities and currency traders are digging into bitcoin and using their own money to to trade bitcoin, noted Silbert. And banks are also interested in the virtual currency, as exchanges are being to formed, to provide potential services to clients such as converting bitcoin into other currencies.

“Bitcoin’s primary attraction, in my view, is that it is a way to transfer funds instantaneously and cheaply with a pretty secure system,” said Englander.

Several high-profile business leaders have showed interest in bitcoin in recent months, including former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, Nobel laureate economist Robert Shiller, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, former vice president Al Gore and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, note industry enthusiasts, which is encouraging for the industry.

These are the early stages for banks getting involved in bitcoin, and the industry as a whole is hesitant in getting involved before regulators weigh in, says Silbert, the Secondmarket founder.

“Banks are waiting for clearer guidance at the federal level on how businesses are having interactions with bitcoin and there is still some questions on the state level,” he added.

"...taking steps to minimize risk."
 
I am very happy to say that I am not the one of tens of thousands of people who lost everything on Mt. Gox USA scam. However, how come that only after exchange is obliterated into dust things like 2 guys show surface. That means those thousands are guilty for trusting advertising and US company.  

In Edmonton, Canada single guy run Flexcoin and place of business was registered with PO box number! How crazy is that? He and his "investors" got wiped out few days ago after break in into his "exchange".

How people determine who is reliable and who not? That's million or 500 million (Mt. Gox US) dollar question.

It looks like there is an explosion of breaking into Bitcoin exchanges/banks. Scary is how easy it is and how much money gets stolen from investors. There is no responsibility or prosecution and suddenly it comes to view that "operators" are running totally unprofessional (hard pressed to say) establishments. Even Mt. Gox USA looks like it was 2 man and bunch of occasional temporary help. Result = thousands of investors lost hundreds of millions of dollars.
Conclusion, BTC is years away to be ready for prime time.
 

Hi there,

Find beautiful O'Neal (Napa, CA, USA) motorcycle helmets, open face and sport starting at BTC2.0 (as of April-15-2013). We will keep pricing low and update it once a day looking at 3 exchanges. Price includes FedEx delivery!

Helmets are really nice, ventilated with integrated Bluetooth device, stereo speakers and low noise microphone. You can listen a music, answer phone calls, listen NAV devices, talk to girl (or guy) in the back seat through wireless intercom, listen any Bluetooth enabled player. Ride is not boring any more. Rechargeable battery is good for 100 hours of listening. Volume control and switch large and handy to be used with gloves on. 5 colors and 4 sizes available (until sold out).

See link here: http://www.almexltd.com/contents/en-ca/d48_O%27NEAL_BLUETOOTH_HELMETS_for_BITCOINS.html

Brand new in the factory box, come complete with power pack (charger + NiMh battery) and printed helmet bag.

Regards,
Zack

sales@almexltd.com
T USA: 941-806-0013 ext 1
T Canada: 905-469-0855 ext 1

Hi there,

We are to quote equipment we sell in Bitcoins. In order to make up realistic pricing we are looking to follow average of 3-4 exchanges rates.
There I got lost. Comparing exchange rates of Canadian and US exchanges values differ by as much as 30%. Same crazy numbers go for spread between by and sell rates. For example we'll buy your Bitcoins for $78 and sell it for $109!?

Either factor is giving me a headache. What is real here and what fake? If have part that sells for U$100 how on earth I will determine how much is that in Bicoins? Prices will differ wildly. As for spread within same exchange, I understand that "house" has to earn money on transactions, but here we are talking about 30 or more percent making sell/buy spread something like $145/$92? I mean WTF?

It is obvious that each exchange is running it's own show with no much correlation to next one. It looks like it is "take or leave it" mentality at work.

Can anybody explain above? 

Hello everybody, Zack from Canada here. 

We posted page 2 hours ago, check it out:

http://www.almexltd.com/contents/en-ca/d48_O%27NEAL_BLUETOOTH_HELMETS_for_BITCOINS.html

Selling motorcycle helmets for Bitcoins! They are fully featured open face and sport helmets with integrated Bluetooth called BLINC, made by O'Neal, CA, USA! Shopping cart is at this time non-functional since provider does not support Bitcoins at this time, but products are real. We will work with Shop Factory to enable Bitcoin as one of the currencies used in shopping cart.

Besides that i noticed on other sites that prices for good are grossly inflated for Bitcoin buyers. Not so here! First of all helmets are on sale and secondly exchange rate used is average of 3 Bitcoin exchanges adjusted once a day, so no BS here.

If there is success with this we will definitely go after full blown commercial site with hi tech CCTV, smart cards, card access equipment available to Bitcoin buyers. First we have to go over this phase, sell out helmets and move to other things, so don't wait, run to www.almexltd.com and buy yourself new helmet using your digital wallets!  

regards,
Zack & Igor