Exchange Monopoly - The Achilles Heel of Bitcoins

[bitsalame]

Although the bitcoin design is very good and descentralized, the exchanges are all virtually dependent of one single one: MtGox.
Any other exchange are all shadows reflecting MtGox prices.
All payment processors such as bitpay depend on MtGox.

This is a single point of failure that would initiate a chain reaction towards an economic catastrophe.
MtGox didn't prove to be reliable at all, the DDoSes are an embarrassment and the MtGox mobile application is becoming abandonware.
I am very worried about this deal with coinlabs. They claim that they will be able to seduce institutional investors and yadda yadda.
Really? Will they really be able to handle all that extra traffic and be invulnerable to another DoS?

It is embarrassing how a single DDoS made bitcoins from being praised in the media to "bitcoin hacked" overnight.
Fuck that shit. But bad press is not really the point. The point is that currently MtGox has too much protagonism and that is a tremendous risk.
I just wish tradehill was still here. Fucking Dwolla.

In any case, I think we need way more exchanges with more power out there.

[tutkarz]

we should display average price from various exchanges not from one. and make it on bitcoin web page or directly in client. That way even if someone dumps alot of bitcoins for sale, the price wouldnt be affected that much. But that average price should be seen easilly because most mtgox users have no idea what price is at other exchanges if they are not looking for this. And currently they think they dont have to.

[Brushan]

I fully agree with you but i also think that all that will come in time. I think big businesses are watching the bitcoin world right now and if Mt.Gox can't handle the load somebody will step up and make alot of money of it.

[inge]

I fully agree with you but i also think that all that will come in time. I think big businesses are watching the bitcoin world right now and if Mt.Gox can't handle the load somebody will step up and make alot of money of it.

Yes, if demand grows, new exchanges will step in the market.

[matonis]

I just wish tradehill was still here. Fucking Dwolla.

As of last month, Tradehill is here with both open order book and dark pool trading:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jonmatonis/2013/03/28/tradehill-exchange-adds-dark-pools-of-bitcoin-liquidity/

[coco]

What about an open source exchange? So anybody can set it up?

Or a distributed one? So the network enforces it? No cheating is possible.

[BitcoinAshley]

Get to the projects section and help test the Freenet P2P decentralized exchange. Assuming it's still there. Heck there might even be more now.

[bitsalame]

I just wish tradehill was still here. Fucking Dwolla.

As of last month, Tradehill is here with both open order book and dark pool trading:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jonmatonis/2013/03/28/tradehill-exchange-adds-dark-pools-of-bitcoin-liquidity/

Oh TradeHill is back up? I didn't know that!

[Jobe7]

Not much you can do against DDoS attacks but sitback and yawn and wait for it to finish.

As others mentioned, upon the growth of btc more exchanges will appear. MtGox have done an excellent job in leading the vanguard, and they will continue to do an excellent job in the future.

The lack of more exchanges is most definitely not MtGox's fault, it is the banksters/governments fault.

They should not be vilified for leading the way, AND remaining strong throughout the assaults. IF they buckled and fell THEN we'd be in a little trouble (but btc would recover, as there are many other exchanges).

But they have shown how resilient btc is, and how they have stood strong. Kudos to them.

Though I do definitely agree that more exchangers is a must, and they will come.