Bitcoin's Legality Around The World
Last November, the U.S. Senate dove head-first into the world of Bitcoin, prompted by Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Tom Carper, a Democratic senator from Delaware who has become very interested in the digital coin. Representatives from law enforcement and financial agencies told the Senate that they weren’t too worried about Bitcoin. The fact that U.S. officials weren’t going after Bitcoin like pitchfork-wielding villagers after Frankenstein reassured Bitcoin speculators, who rocketed its value from $200 to $1200. Now that the U.S. government’s position on Bitcoin is relatively certain, Sen. Carper wants to know what the rest of the world thinks. His committee tasked the Law Library of Congress with surveying over 40 countries for their official stance on Bitcoin and whether Bitcoin is actually in use.
“Of those countries surveyed, only a very few, notably China and Brazil, have specific regulations applicable to bitcoin use,” according to the report. “There is widespread concern about the Bitcoin system’s possible impact on national currencies, its potential for criminal misuse, and the implications of its use for taxation. Overall, the findings of this report reveal that the debate over how to deal with this new virtual currency is still in its infancy.”
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2014/01/31/bitcoins-legality-around-the-world/
