lol - if you are watching live right now -- down ~33% from ~15 as of 4:20 PM EST

[fcmatt]

lol.
the selling is crazy at this moment.
that is all.

[SkRRJyTC]

What happened to BTFD?

[Yuhfhrh]

WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE! SELL!  AHHHHHH >.<

[matthewh3]

It's just more manipulation by Pirate trying to make more money to pay back his deposits.

After much consideration, I’ve decided to close down Bitcoin Savings & Trust. 

Why?
The decision was based on the general size and overall time required to manage the transactions.  As the fund grew there were larger and larger coin movements which put strain on my reserve accounts and ultimately caused delays on withdraws and the inability to fund orders within my system.  On the 14th I made a final attempt to relieve pressure off the system by reducing the rates I offered for deposits.  In a perfect world this would allow me to hold more coins in reserve outside the system, but instead it only exponentially increased the amount of withdrawals overnight causing mass panic from many of my lenders.

So now what?
I’ve spoken with my clients over the last week and come to an agreement that would allow me to close down my operation within a week.  Currently my reserve (operating wallets) are drained from fulfilling the withdraw spree that happened after the rate drop announcement.  All withdraws at this point will be delayed until Monday when the shutdown process begins.. 

At this point I will no longer accept deposits.  Any coins sent into the system as of now will be returned immediately.

When will I get my coins?
Starting Monday I’ll begin systematically closing and withdrawing accounts as coins are transferred.  I don't expect the entire process to last longer than a week. The moment your account is closed you’ll receive your coins plus any interest accrued up to the hour it was sent.

Thanks
I’d like to thank all of my lenders and PPT operators that were a key element in making Bitcoin Savings & Trust a success.  Bitcoin has grown a lot since I started this and want you to know that you were a vital part in helping it grow.

Now, I have a lot of work to do. Stay Tuned

-pirate

BTW, this is all bitlane’s fault.  (j/k you nut)

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=50822.msg605957#msg605957

[Spekulatius]

It's just more manipulation by Pirate trying to make more money to pay back his deposits.

After much consideration, I’ve decided to close down Bitcoin Savings & Trust. 

Why?
The decision was based on the general size and overall time required to manage the transactions.  As the fund grew there were larger and larger coin movements which put strain on my reserve accounts and ultimately caused delays on withdraws and the inability to fund orders within my system.  On the 14th I made a final attempt to relieve pressure off the system by reducing the rates I offered for deposits.  In a perfect world this would allow me to hold more coins in reserve outside the system, but instead it only exponentially increased the amount of withdrawals overnight causing mass panic from many of my lenders.

So now what?
I’ve spoken with my clients over the last week and come to an agreement that would allow me to close down my operation within a week.  Currently my reserve (operating wallets) are drained from fulfilling the withdraw spree that happened after the rate drop announcement.  All withdraws at this point will be delayed until Monday when the shutdown process begins.. 

At this point I will no longer accept deposits.  Any coins sent into the system as of now will be returned immediately.

When will I get my coins?
Starting Monday I’ll begin systematically closing and withdrawing accounts as coins are transferred.  I don't expect the entire process to last longer than a week. The moment your account is closed you’ll receive your coins plus any interest accrued up to the hour it was sent.

Thanks
I’d like to thank all of my lenders and PPT operators that were a key element in making Bitcoin Savings & Trust a success.  Bitcoin has grown a lot since I started this and want you to know that you were a vital part in helping it grow.

Now, I have a lot of work to do. Stay Tuned

-pirate

BTW, this is all bitlane’s fault.  (j/k you nut)

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=50822.msg605957#msg605957

I second this. If he's out of bitcoin right now, he will want to buy bitcoin cheap to pay back (if at all) his lenders.

[Bjork]

AAAnd we're already back,

further proof that this rally is/was legit.  Continue on.

[Rassah]

Wow, that is almost verbatim from what was announced by the Ginko (ponzi) savings bank on SecondLife, and probably every other ponzi scheme out there. I am willing to bet that the people who had accounts with pirate will NOT get their money back in a week, if ever. Watch for more explanations and excuses for why money won't be available yet.

[elux]

Wow, that is almost verbatim from what was announced by the Ginko (ponzi) savings bank on SecondLife, and probably every other ponzi scheme out there.
I am willing to bet that the people who had accounts with pirate will NOT get their money back in a week, if ever.
Watch for more explanations and excuses for why money won't be available yet.

Notice Regarding Current Situation 08/05/07 02:57:38 PM EDT___________________________________________________

I would like to personally try to explain some of what’s been going on.

About a week and a half ago, we saw an increased number of withdrawals; the time to speculate as to why this happened has since come and gone, so I will leave it at that. No matter what started it, the result is the same: We have expended every possible short-term resource, and are still unable to meet the current demand for funds. We have attempted several different things to remedy the situation (which is in short why the interest rates and limits have fluctuated wildly), but none of them turned into a viable permenant solution.

For the time being, we have decided to continue doing business normally, but leaving the withdrawal queue in place with an expanded L$1,000,000/day limit, to give an indication as to where the end of this situation may be. However, a realistic estimate could possibly extend in to the realm of several months.

It may be hard to believe that we would expect people to stick with us, especially after how poorly this situation has been handled, but a large number of you continue to show your support, and I still have hope of a second chance at fixing the problem.

For those of you who wish to withdraw your funds, you may wait in the queue, or cash out to Ginko Perpetual Bonds, which is currently the only option if you don’t wish to wait the seemingly indefinate period of time it could take to refill the reserves.

I would also like to personally appologize for the lack of communication and the diminishing customer support during all of this, but through all of the changes that were being made it is impossible to keep my support staff fully informed, and usually I am the last person down the line to receive factual information — and too often the first person to relay that information to you.

I thank everyone for your continued support of Ginko Financial, and hopefully with time we will be able to continue through this situation and get things put back right.

-Hinoserm

More here: Ginko Financial’s End-Game.

[notme]

Wow, that is almost verbatim from what was announced by the Ginko (ponzi) savings bank on SecondLife, and probably every other ponzi scheme out there.
I am willing to bet that the people who had accounts with pirate will NOT get their money back in a week, if ever.
Watch for more explanations and excuses for why money won't be available yet.

Notice Regarding Current Situation 08/05/07 02:57:38 PM EDT___________________________________________________

I would like to personally try to explain some of what’s been going on.

About a week and a half ago, we saw an increased number of withdrawals; the time to speculate as to why this happened has since come and gone, so I will leave it at that. No matter what started it, the result is the same: We have expended every possible short-term resource, and are still unable to meet the current demand for funds. We have attempted several different things to remedy the situation (which is in short why the interest rates and limits have fluctuated wildly), but none of them turned into a viable permenant solution.

For the time being, we have decided to continue doing business normally, but leaving the withdrawal queue in place with an expanded L$1,000,000/day limit, to give an indication as to where the end of this situation may be. However, a realistic estimate could possibly extend in to the realm of several months.

It may be hard to believe that we would expect people to stick with us, especially after how poorly this situation has been handled, but a large number of you continue to show your support, and I still have hope of a second chance at fixing the problem.

For those of you who wish to withdraw your funds, you may wait in the queue, or cash out to Ginko Perpetual Bonds, which is currently the only option if you don’t wish to wait the seemingly indefinate period of time it could take to refill the reserves.

I would also like to personally appologize for the lack of communication and the diminishing customer support during all of this, but through all of the changes that were being made it is impossible to keep my support staff fully informed, and usually I am the last person down the line to receive factual information — and too often the first person to relay that information to you.

I thank everyone for your continued support of Ginko Financial, and hopefully with time we will be able to continue through this situation and get things put back right.

-Hinoserm

http://alphavilleherald.com/2007/08/ginko-financial-2.html

To me that sounds way sketchier than pirate's announcment, but as smoothie and others like to point out repeatedly I'm biased.

[Rassah]

Wow, blast from the past elux! Thanks for finding that! I admit I actually invested in Ginko too (only about $250, which paid for itself since I withdrew every week they paid), and was actually friends/acquaintances with the guy who was helping run it (mostly coding and administrative duties). Supposedly Ginko's investment strategy was high-leverage real estate investment in Ecuador or some other central american company. They used your deposit to buy a $100,000 house with $20k downpayment, wait for it to go up to $120, and sell it for %100 profit. Sounded legit, but turned out to either be unsustainable, or total bunk. Though that letter was more desperate sounding because that was their final step in a long series of problems after SecondLife admins banned gambling on SL, which was the biggest economic driver, and was the main cause of all the big money pulling theirs out of Ginko to begin with (couldn't make profit on SL, so cashed out, and it had nothing to do with Ginko itself)

[elux]

Wow, that is almost verbatim from what was announced by the Ginko (ponzi) savings bank on SecondLife, and probably every other ponzi scheme out there.

As a case study, how do you think that one ended, after the announcement?

Not well, it turns out: Second Life's Ginko Financial Flounders with $750,000 in Unpaid Liabilities

You're not getting your money back from pirate. Save perhaps a Tom Williams parting trick.

This stalling is just another gimmick, straight from the book. Please remind me to eat my words if BS&T pays in full.