2013-11-14 NY regulator considers bitcoin regulation license

[freedomno1]

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ny-regulator-considers-bitcoin-regulation-license-2013-11-14?dist=countdown

Full Article:

By Saumya Vaishampayan
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The New York State Department of Financial Services said Thursday it will hold a public hearing on the regulation of virtual currencies like bitcoin in the coming months. The hearing will focus on the connection between money-transmission regulations and virtual currencies, as well as consider a specific license for virtual currencies, the regulator said in a notice of intent. The possible BitLicense would have anti-money laundering and consumer protection requirements, and the hearing could address how and when such a license would be issued. The move comes after the regulator in August issued several subpoenas to bitcoin companies and said it would examine regulation of virtual currencies. "Virtual currencies may have a number of legitimate commercial purposes, including the facilitation of financial transactions," Benjamin Lawsky, superintendent of financial services, said in the notice. "That said, NYDFS also believes that it is in the long-term interest of the virtual currency industry to put in place appropriate guardrails that protect consumers, root out illegal activity, and safeguard our national security."

[Gabi]

Ahahah, now we will need license to run a software?

[Carlton Banks]

Cue Bitcoin's exodus from New York State.

[odolvlobo]

Cue Bitcoin's exodus from New York State.

Yeah, it's going to suck for people in New York.

NYDFS also believes that it is in the long-term interest of the virtual currency industry to ...

This is disingenuous. It seems to me that the virtual currency industry is able to decide what is in its best interest. It doesn't need some regulators to tell it. The truth is that the NYDFS believes that it is in their best interest ...

[Carlton Banks]

Cue Bitcoin's exodus from New York State.

Yeah, it's going to suck for people in New York.

I recommend the people to leave, too 

[r00tbg]

Situation is like trying to block with your finger hole in the dam 

[marcus_of_augustus]

.... and safeguard our national security."

He's specifically invoked the spook clause (not the first time either), it will only go downhill from here. Secret courts, sham trials, water-boarding miners, who know where that rabbit hole will lead?

[Carlton Banks]

.... and safeguard our national security."

He's specifically invoked the spook clause (not the first time either), it will only go downhill from here. Secret courts, sham trials, water-boarding miners, who know where that rabbit hole will lead?

Rendering cryptocurrency terrorists to black prison sites in Djibouti.

[MaxBTC1]

We are chuckling from Euroland.  But seriously Mehrica sort this out because the same will happen to us if you let this happen.

[odolvlobo]

NYDFS also believes that it is in the long-term interest of the virtual currency industry to ...

A friend of mine had this incredible insight:

If the NYDFS truly believes that their regulation is in the best interest of the virtual currency industry, then they should make a currency incorporating their regulations. If it is truly in our best interest, then everyone will adopt it!

To take something that already works well and say they can improve it by placing external controls is certain to fail because nobody will adopt their "improvements".

[dave111223]

NYDFS also believes that it is in the long-term interest of the virtual currency industry to ...

A friend of mine had this incredible insight:

If the NYDFS truly believes that their regulation is in the best interest of the virtual currency industry, then they should make a currency incorporating their regulations. If it is truly in our best interest, then everyone will adopt it!

To take something that already works well and say they can improve it by placing external controls is certain to fail because nobody will adopt their "improvements".

I've heard that FBI's CavitySearchCoin and the IRS' AnalProbeCoin are in the works...I can see them taking over from Bitcoin shortly.

[jdbtracker]

wow... I know that Bitcoin is free, but man the way this particular article intends to modify Bitcoin is hilarious.

I can imagine this in a different scenario.

"wow, this thing is amazing, it regulates itself, even allows people to use it as they like."
"hmmm,.... this won't do, how do we get people to do as we say and not as we do?"
"I know! well monitor the people monitoring the monitor! just threaten them to use it as we want them to."
"Even better! lets tell them they need a licence to use it and make it impossible to get, lol!"

[rogue13]

What they really want to do is have easy entry points into the network. So when you buy coins, the address the coins are sent to are put in a database that can be easily searched and analyzed. So if somewhere down the line they link an address to a criminal organization they can (with some luck) trace the coins back to one of these "entry points" that has an identity attached to it. What I am afraid of is them then saying only addresses registered with us are valid for US transactions and it is illegal to accept bitcoin from a non registered address. But then again, who knows how this will turn out.

[desired_username]

And this is the moment when all supporters of bitcoin should contact this regulator flooding them with emails and mails saying NO to this nonsense.

[Gabi]

The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers

[notthematrix]

Well the u.s.a will be the new 3rd word I gues...
Regulating bitcoin is as http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tR4e8zwnR6w
The blackhole will solve over regulation fast

[n8rwJeTt8TrrLKPa55eU]

Cue Bitcoin's exodus from New York State.

Yeah, it's going to suck for people in New York.

I recommend the people to leave, too  

They sure are trying to drive out all entrepreneurs as fast as possible, the collectivist slavemasters there absolutely cannot stand any hint of self-determination or privately-owned property within their tax farm.  Bitcoin is just one example among several:

But the company is also embroiled in a legal fight with the New York attorney general, who is concerned that some landlords are abusing the service and renting their properties illegally.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2013/11/15/heres-why-airbnb-isnt-worried-about-new-york-citys-crackdown/

[Carlton Banks]

Cue Bitcoin's exodus from New York State.

Yeah, it's going to suck for people in New York.

I recommend the people to leave, too  

They sure are trying to drive out all entrepreneurs as fast as possible, the collectivist slavemasters there absolutely cannot stand any hint of self-determination or privately-owned property within their tax farm.  Bitcoin is just one example among several:

But the company is also embroiled in a legal fight with the New York attorney general, who is concerned that some landlords are abusing the service and renting their properties illegally.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2013/11/15/heres-why-airbnb-isnt-worried-about-new-york-citys-crackdown/

Well, the so called conspiracy theorists are proving to have called it correctly, next thing you know Obama and Biden will be metamorphosing into reptilians with cloven hooves  .

It turns out that we really are treading on the toes of the biggest, longest enduring and possibly the most ruthless cartel in recent history. They're pretty pissed off about this, don't think you can make any mistake about it. The only really weakness of Bitcoin that can be easily exploited is the public transcation information in the blockchain, but there is more than one way to evolve around the problem.

We can mitigate for it with the various transaction obscuration tools (CoinJoin, CoinSwap, eventually CoinWitness), and there are other new advances in cryptography that can actually prevent this happening at all, by making the system totally anonymous (ZeroCoin being an imperfect attempt, there will be more).

In the end, the monetary paradigm has shifted, and short of turning the entire world into a totalitarian dictatorship or a dystopic warzone, there's nothing that the old currency cartels can do. Apart from wave goodbye, graciously. Bye-bye!

[notthematrix]

A state can make any law , but if you cant enforce them who CARES!!!

[theonewhowaskazu]

So, are they planning to make a license for USING digital currencies...
or for running an exchange or similar service DEALING IN digital currencies.

If its the first, I'll be flabbergasted at their stupidity.
If its the second, I'll actually be pretty happy. Currently, exchangers need a money transmitter license. A more specialized license could potentially actually help Bitcoin.