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Can't hand out any scammer tags until we know Pirateat40 wasn't hacked by some mysterious international art collector mafioso.
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There are degrees to libertarianism, otherwise they'd just be anarchists. Using available legal means to enforce a contract is not contradictory.
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Not giving the information for purposes of identification. Pirateat40 has a pretty well established connection to GPUMax, GPUMax is a registered LLC. Based on Texas bankruptcy rules the risk of any damage flowing over to GPUMax is minimal. Though, there is that pesky issue of mixing BTC with Pirate Bank.
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He is not going to pay back at all. It's over.
There are advantages for him in going through the legal motions even if there's not a cent available to pay people. I'm curious about why he's not shutting down GPUMax, though. Exemptions available under Texas bankruptcy: http://shawnpwilliams.com/2009/03/11/filing-bankruptcy-in-texas-what-can-you-keep/Miscellaneous: Property of business partnership; alimony and child support; higher education savings plan trust account; liquor licenses and permits |
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Web of Trust, rofl. Everyman for himself it seems, Goat smelled the "lawyer up" vibe from Pirate right away.
Edit: So he stalls for a week and then gives his core accounts 48 hours to disclose all sub-accounts. Pirateat40 needs a Scammer tag on this forum and internet blackballed in general.
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Is he still "downloading the blockchain" so he can show how much BTC he controls?  |
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He admitted the insolvency before this default declaration. Said he didn't have the BTC to repay everyone. But, hey, he's trying really hard.
So which debts were deadlined today, anyone hoping for a partial repayment won't get much confidence from Pirateat40 not being able to produce a small fraction of the BTC.
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Just for laughs, do not read into this image crazy forum people.  |
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He said no by lowering interest rates, like a free market business should. Too bad the FUD masters incited the herd to stampede for the exit  . Yeah, because the only bump he hit was that far into it... until just that point, he didn't need to adjust inflows of capital at all. Oh and is his completely legitimate enterprise still offering compounding interest while shutting down? That's the most mind boggling part, he admits he doesn't have the BTC to pay it all out yet doesn't announce interest of 0%. Interesting you blame FUD for a stampede, didn't seem like the attitude of Pirateat40 skeptics changed much at all in intensity this whole time. Just maybe it was the opaque and seemingly unsustainable nature of Pirateat40's offer that created an easily spooked customer base. |
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MarkM, your thinking makes no sense. Bitcoin was already trading for dollars rather than cents before Pirate started up. I have the same question ldgrn has, why no changing of interest nor changing of investment intake (buy in waves, etc.) once he opened up to wider investment? That just doesn't make sense on the face of it.
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How many BTC did he actually pay back out? Is there some public full accounting of transactions I'm missing?
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But when he started opening up to public BTC, did he ever say no? Even something growing by leaps and bounds would need to setup some controls such as investment rounds. Perhaps he is a wizard who can plan for a completely uncapped investment flow. So far I haven't seen anything past speculation at his business model, far from the confident proclamations of "I've figured it out and you might be able to as well if you are resourceful" from some Pirate backers a while ago. 2) So much growth he doesn't seem to have a need to control how much inflow of investors there are? Opening up to the public with seemingly no limits or buy in rounds? I know this is an "internet" business but I thought the dotcom bubble and now facebook would have killed the idea of such growth.
There wasn't unbounded growth. There were people that weren't ever going to invest with Pirate. There were people that were only going to invest X with Pirate. Still others couldn't afford to buy more coins because they ran out of funds and/or the price was goin gup past their preferred purchase point. That only leaves the new coins from mining and obviously, that's limited as well too. |
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I see being 'dense' goes both ways, because I already answered 1) a few posts up.
2) I expect business growth.
3) I can just imagine the additional stink people would make if he didn't pay total the interest due on things. I know its a drop in the bucket compared to the principal. It may have also just been an oversight. I really don't know, he hasn't told me.
4) If he sells coins to investor Y at say $10, coins that weren't really his, but coins that he borrowed off you and I, he must return the coins to us. In the past, the coins were slowly appreciating, so once they hit $11, investor Y would sell. Well, he announced the closure and the price tanked. So now investor Y doesn't want to sell. Sure, pirate's got cash he could buy coins. We all know trying to buying a bunch of coins on gox is going ot make the price jump like a SOB so that's a terrible option. Meanwhile, investor Y's pissed that he's taking a loss. Perhaps the contract from pirate guaranteed a certain minimum price for X amount of days. A whole slew of scenarios could be there. Regardless, the sudden closure has thrown a wrench in things. Probably an overreaction on pirate's part, but Monday morning quarterbacks always pick the right play.
2) So much growth he doesn't seem to have a need to control how much inflow of investors there are? Opening up to the public with seemingly no limits or buy in rounds? I know this is an "internet" business but I thought the dotcom bubble and now facebook would have killed the idea of such growth. 3) An oversight he has never corrected, riiiiiiiight. 4) It's not sideline quarterbacking when he's the one who set out his payout rules. If anything it's amateur refereeing, heh. |
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I do think it's a viable business idea on some level. I believed it at one point, mostly because I wanted to believe.
But it's the volume of BTCST plus the extraordinary interest rates (over such a long time) that make me unable to believe it.
Possible, maybe. I just don't think that is what is actually taking place. If it weren't for my new bet, I would like to be wrong.
It's also very easy for a legitimate investment scheme to slip over into the realm of ponzi. I do tend to think it was a scam from the start, and that this business idea is the only one Pirate could propagate to justify borrowing so many coins. It was only a matter of time before someone realized how simple a bitcoin ponzi scheme would be to pull off. Inevitable.
Yes, saying D&T is "missing it" is pretty flippant. If that was his model: 1. Why was Pirate's appetite for more BTC seemingly insatiable, until he closed? 2. How was he able to promise consistent returns for such a long period of time? 3. Why has he not publicly stated interest compounding has ceased? 4. What is it about this claimed trading model that has left him seemingly short of quite a bit of BTC a week after closing? |
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There are many types of fraud, the ponzi fraud is paying out returns from new investors money. The business can start out completely above board but the moment it begins recruiting new investors so that it can take that money to pay promised returns to current investors, it becomes a ponzi scheme.
If someone takes investment money and provides it as an unsecured loan to a friend or associate knowing the associate will "invest" it in a manner to benefit the lender, that is not a ponzi but it is fraud.
If someone takes investment money claiming it is for Business A but uses the funds for Business B and C, that is not a ponzi but it is fraud.
I would love to hear this brilliant business model that I'm too closed minded or dumb to spot that allows Pirateat40 to not cutoff interest accrual upon closing. If it's high interest loans not done in a fraudulent manner how can the returns have been so consistent and how can he be so confident of repayment that he doesn't put a stop on compounding interest? Please oh wise claimants, enlighten us. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.
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Why did he not announce 0 interest after closing down though. He's also stated he didn't have the coins to do a full payout. Doesn't add up if it was all on fast bitcoin transfers.
As to AML, that mainly affects financial institutions. Tax would apply on the USD gained, though, and thus reduce actual profits realized. Assuming he was above board.
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I agree that anyone expecting extra consideration from an uninsured pass through is mainly in denial or trying to pass the buck. But I think it's about time for people who said they "knew what pirate was doing" to step up and either say "nah I was just fronting for pirate" or reveal the information they claimed to possess. The terms of the PPTs were very clear. The vigilante sentiment that has been floating around lately is just sickening (even considering the hyperbole).
Yeah it is crazyness. p4man even made money from something he called a scam. Will p4man will give back his coins? I bet he wont, but I bet he keeps crying about others losing. What a joke... They mob can't go after Pirate and wont go after Theymos so they are trying to go after the PPTs. Now why would they do that? Are they just bored? Did they fail to read a contract or know how GLBSE works? I would be very happy to meet anyone in court who thinks that I did wrong in this legally as long as the loser paid court costs. Theymos asked for a favor and I did it. He wanted people to set up an uninsured PPT on GLBSE (a company he part owns). He did this while assuming it was a Ponzi. Will GLBSE give back all the fees from the PPT volume? I doubt it... People should only gamble money they can afford to lose. People should have better things to do than judge other adults doing what they want with their money on the internet. I know p4man is feeling guilty cuz he won but he is not really being helpful by making silly attacks to cover up that guilt. You guys should really bring your pitch forks to the satashi dice thread so you can gamble and troll more. Enjoy |
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1. File a suit vs John Doe (AKA Pirateat40) 2. Subpoena online information (Dropbox, Facebook, GPUMax registration, etc.) 3. Cross check with available legal identification (State ID, Background Services, etc.) 4. Serve Papers Good luck with your letter addressed "Santa's Workshop, North Pole". In order to serve you have to know who and where he is
Every one knows Santa lives in the North Pole, I met him in Vegas and he proved it. |
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