+1000 actually...

Branson don't just copy MatTheCat. You've got to find your own way of trolling!  

It is my belief that if the Chinese exchanges had been taken offline a month ago Gox, Stamp and BTC-e would be significantly higher than where we are today. So what?

I think China fear is directly keeping the prices down!

He he! 

What's wrong MatTheCat? Why are you taking a swipe at me?

Very interesting. And it backs up what any rational person can guess already: that China understands the significance of Bitcoin and will not simply ban it.

Nothing to do with a haircut. It's to do with the fact that come 31 January and no crash, there will be nothing left to wait for.

Unless everyone can get sufficiently scared of something else. I'm guessing the next bogeyman used to signal impending doom will be Gox! 

He he! 50BTC? Don't make me laugh Branson! You don't have a BTC to your name. You're full fiat! 

6 years

Buying now is actually a much better idea than waiting for next weekend. By then I fully expect prices to be higher on all exchanges.

You were saying... ?

You know it's getting bad when you've got your eyes glued on the minute scale! 

I think you underestimate the hardened nerves of experienced Bitcoiners. Over the past three years the market has been up and down with swings and doomsday scenarios massively bigger than most Wall Streeters have ever seen. This experience counts for something you know, even among people without experience of financial markets, stocks, etc. (probably more so among this demographic actually).

Bitcoin Takes Center Stage at iFX EXPO in Macau

http://forexmagnates.com/bitcoin-takes-center-stage-at-ifx-expo-in-macau-despite-chinese-hostility/

Making more waves in the financial sector

http://www.entornointeligente.com/articulo/1937896/BOLIVIA-Bitcoin-la-moneda-virtual-que-quiere-revolucionar-la-economia-26012014

South America, here we come! 

Google translation: Time / A VIRTUAL CURRENCY WITH FLOATING PRICE HAS BEEN DEVELOPED TO REPLACE TRADITIONAL MONEY. 's Bitcoin is a currency such as the euro or the dollar, but do not depend on any financial institution and used primarily by Internet. It was created in 2008 and still is stabilizing, but has already entered the financial market as part of the sophisticated world of virtual currencies. A recent report by the chief economist of the Swiss bank UBS, Paul Donovan, one of the most important in their area, an analysis of the value of these blocks, from an economic and financial standpoint, especially Bitcoin, the most popular. This currency, used primarily on the Internet, is an electronic currency (or criptodivisa) decentralized conceived in 2008 by a person (or persons) who under the pseudonym "Satoshi Nakamoto" published a white paper, it proposes a set of electronic transactions that depends on trust but allows transfers directly without the need for an intermediary . The term also applies to the protocol designed by the same author and the P2P network that supports it. Unlike most currencies, bitcoin is not backed by any government or depends on trust in any central issuer, but uses a test system working to prevent double spending and reach consensus among all nodes within the network. It is a relatively new project that is evolving. For this reason, its developers recommend caution and treat it as experimental software, this is what is explained in brief in the popular Wikipedia, but speaking simply, is it in a few years an option to replace the traditional? WHO THE CONTROLS? One of the key issues when analyzing a market is its price. After a 8,750% growth in eleven months, at this time it has fallen 30% since the peak at $ 1,200, but in recent days the price again exceeded $ 1,000. In this context, Bitcoin is not the only virtual currency that has developed in recent years. For example, many computer games have created their own currencies, either by creating ex novo or through a system changes with real currency. As in any market, the price obtained by the competition between supply and demand. In the case of a virtual currency, the offer depends on the maintenance over time of the issuing of her cyber platforms. If at any time, one or more issuers disappear, the value of issued coins would go to zero. This could also happen in the real world (the failure of a State or Central Bank). However, the probability of failure of a State or Central Bank is substantially less than an internet platform, according to economist Donovan.  Not being issued or backed by a State or a Central Bank, do not have the usual protection schemes as liability insurance, fraud or theft. In this field, the risk of fraud or theft is similar to both a virtual currency as a legal tender. In the event Bitcoin is its own protocol which regulates the issuance of coins. IS MONEY? Paul Donovan believes that any property that is used as a "means of payment" can be defined as money somehow. However, this end is not supported by economic theory. For a whether money should be properly considered an asset and an institution with a number of key properties: unit of account, means of payment and store of value. The function of a means of payment is fully satisfactory. However, the functions of unit of account and store of value is very difficult to define in this field. Their importance is measured by the value of a means of payment that is taken from the disposal of a third party to accept it as a valid contribution transaction. In the case of legal tender, the counterpart always accept the payment method as there is a legal obligation for acceptance. In the case of a virtual currency, there is a risk of very significant contribution which hinders its extent and reliability. Importance of a virtual currency can also be interpreted in terms of reaction. The company, knowing manipulation of fiat money, opt for developing other instruments in which to escape this situation. VIRTUAL COINS AND GOLD "To some extent, gold was the first virtual currency at least after 1971 when the union weak between legal tender and gold was broken. " The interpretation of Donovan justified ensuring that virtual currencies play a certainly similar role with respect to gold, as they are not recognized as coins but there are certain markets that are traded as if they were. Though this certainly attractive conclusion should not lose sight of the two essential features separated by an abyss of virtual gold coins: gold has been accepted as money almost from the beginning of time and is a real asset with properties beyond the medium payment. The Bitcoin yet. EXPERIENCE Lucas Viano, lavoz.com.ar journalist explains the experience of their fellow citizens in Argentina. "Inflation, dollar stocks and magnetism by technological innovations are the breeding ground for Argentine surrender at the feet of Bitcoin, the digital currency that is feeling in the world. Late November 2013 climbed to $ 1137. previously achieved a year for $ 13. fluctuates now around $ 900. According to the Bitcoin Argentina Foundation, there are about five thousand Argentine operating with this virtual currency. Cordoba Some are. "In 2012 a magazine for electronics engineers published a note on bitcoin. So I was hooked. I use it to make donations to FOSS projects. I also realized transactions. At one point was the only one in Cordoba, "says Tomas Sironi, telecommunications student. mercadobitcoin.com The site can be viewed online stores Argentine bitcoin Most are from Buenos Aires to Córdoba A few are:.. Hotels Garden Azur and Real, natural products business mercaditonatural.com.ar and web design company WebStudios. Scarfia Nicholas, owner of the latter company, says that in Argentina the stocks to the dollar and inflation are motorizing the bitcoin. Is creator of the website conbitcoin.com, a portal for classified ads to buy and sell products with this currency. "The site has a little over a year. Now there are over a thousand ads. Half are from Argentina and of those, one quarter are of Córdoba "details." In my case I used it to buy the hosting of a website, "says Javier (not his real name), who also operates with bitcoin. Like Thomas, are a sort of "trees", buy and sell bitcoin.'s main clients are foreign investors and using digital currency to move currency from one country to another without paying taxes or accounting. Xavier prefers to hide his identity because bitcoin is in a legal gray area in the country. No law nor the government has given its opinion on the subject. therefore may be associated with illicit businesses or black money. Martín, architect and entrepreneur receives bitcoin for sale a lot in order to "diversify assets." has had very low bids. "It's an alternative to the dollar and a challenge we are experiencing, encouraged by the good performance of the bitcoin" he says. Requests 40 bitcoin for a lot of 485 square meters in Santa Rosa. "Ideal for credit Procrear" says the classified ad. Meanwhile, Augustine owns the www.mercaditonatural.com.ar food store which also receives the digital currency. "Receiving bitcoin am supporting a movement that challenges the systems and prevailing customs and searches you redefine other contemplating the value of collaboration instead of competition, "he says. customers Augustine can buy olives, seeds, honey, tea, rice and to shampoo and pay with bitcoin. "La bitcoin maintains many of the mistakes of the old economy. However, it is a good first step to make way for this kind of discussion about how we want to build our economy peer, "says Augustine. risk of bitcoin is sustained through what gives security: there is no organization that controlled. No has a physical presence, so you can not steal if there is a risk that the network is hacked. Nevertheless, Thomas says that much computing power is needed to achieve that. "Today you can make a transaction anywhere in the world and nobody can stop it. The operation is person to person. It is a great economic experiment "he says. Meanwhile, Javier adds: "His future will depend on the support of people who require it. Another major barrier that must pass is to support institutional investors and states. " EXTREME CASES DOS Several destinations. term "fault" of the bitcoin, a man bought an apartment for $ 22, but another had paid nine million two pizzas. In 2009, the Norwegian Kristoffer Koch bought five bitcoins for $ 22. Time passed and forgot I had that investment. then learned that the value of digital currency had increased significantly. had $ 850,000 but had Forgot the password for your virtual wallet. When reminded, invested all their bitcoins in an apartment in the center of Oslo. A Laszlo Hanyecz he went the opposite. in 2010 paid 10 mil he bitcoin for two pizzas. At that time this amount of digital currency equivalent to $ 30. But at the current price of bitcoin, Hanyecz would have paid for the pizzas about nine billion. (With data Oroyfinanzas.com, Wikipedia, quesbitcoin.com, lavoz.com.ar BBC) Bitcoin, IN SIMPLE The Bitcoin is a currency such as the euro or the U.S. dollar, used to exchange goods and services. Yet unlike other currencies, Bitcoin is an electronic currency which has new features and is known for its efficiency, . safety and ease of exchange These are some of these characteristics: • It does not belong to any state or country and can be used worldwide alike. • is decentralized. not controlled by any state bank, financial institution or company • It is impossible to counterfeit or duplication by a sophisticated cryptographic system. • No intermediaries: transactions are made ​​directly from person to person. • Transactions are irreversible. • bitcoins can change to euros or other currencies and vice versa, as any currency. ORIGINS Satoshi Nakamoto is the pseudonym of the person or group of people who designed the Bitcoin protocol in 2008, and created the network in 2009. cryptographers At a conference of the names of Michael Clear and Vili Lehdonvirt signed up, but both refused to be . Nakamoto In April 2011, Nakamoto announced their separation project to pursue other work (Wikipedia). • No need to reveal your identity to do business and preserves your privacy. • The money belongs to 100%, can not be involved by anyone or accounts may be frozen.

Interesting, as I always suspected that people who need to quote the almighty Wikipedia rather than being able to rely on their own brains come across as idiots! 

I think Bitcoin is in a totally different situation now than it was in 2011/2012.

Aside from the fact that businesses worldwide are just beginning to become educated about the very real benefits that adopting Bitcoin can have for them, there is a whole new crowd of people with interest in Bitcoin as an asset, not just from a private perspective but from a business perspective as well (Second Market, Winklevoss ETF, etc.).

http://nypost.com/2014/01/26/bitcoin-could-be-crime-fighter-against-credit-hacks/

Very good point being made about Bitcoin's potential to overcome the type of fraud associated with credit cards.

http://www.survivalmonkey.com/threads/washington-state-financial-regulation-department-writes-that-digital-currency-and-bitcoin-is.40793/

Interesting post about Bitcoin being classed as "money" under Washington State's law code. Don't know how recent the clarification is but the post was made today. Anyone have further info?