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Russian Bitcoin Issuers Will Risk 7 Years In Prison (thestack.com)
An anonymous reader writes: The Russian Ministry of Finance has announced an amendment to the country's criminal code which will impose prison sentences of up to seven years for the issuing of Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. A government source speaking to Interfax (Russian) said that the maximum prison sentence for individuals found issuing cryptocurrencies would be 2-4 years, and/or up to three years' worth of salary or income, whilst managers of dispensing institutions could face seven years in prison, up to four years of income equivalent in fines, and a lifetime ban from similar posts. Russia announced the ban on Bitcoin or other 'money surrogates' in February of 2014, asserting that cryptocurrencies facilitate money-laundering and other criminal activity.
Because "Control"
If the government can't control you, you are a danger to the government. And government cannot allow its people to be uncontrolled.
And this "war on crypto-currency" will fare about as well as the War on Drugs has.
Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
Citation needed. Because according to this, there are few or no special regulations for Bitcoin in the countries you mentioned:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
Not just in Soviet Russia, comrade.
If it weren't for deadlines, nothing would be late.
That's not really true. The War on Drugs hasn't failed at all.
The War on Drugs has been a *huge* success... for those people who want a ready made excuse to throw people in jail.
Guess what the War on Bitcoin will provide?
The goal of the law isn't to *end* Bitcoin, it is merely to keep it from overtaking the ruble for most purchases. In this, it will totally succeed.
Also, by insuring that you can only buy criminal things with now-criminal crypto-currency, it will ensure that Bitcoin never gets a reputation as being useful for normal business. Just having a Bitcoin will equate you with all sorts of drug runners, terrorists, and child pornography sorts all by association. I can already envision the judges and jury recoiling from you with a look of fear and disgust on their faces for your dirty crimes.
Bitcoin threat averted. And here you thought that they were failing....
It's basically exactly analogous to cash.
With cash, you can trace it with the serial number and with bitcoin you need the chain - both are trivial to work around, though laundering physical money is harder.
With cash you cannot tell who gave you the cash- this is also the case with a "laundered" bitcoin. Here cash has the edge since you don't need to take any action.
With cash, you can hide it anywhere - just like your bitcoin wallet. Bitcoin has an edge here because the wallet is ultimately just a number. It is easier to hide a slice of information than a physical pile of cash.
Both seem to scare the hell out of authorities. That's perhaps the best "feature".
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.