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US Launches Criminal Probe Into Bitcoin Price Manipulation (bloomberg.com)
The Justice Department has opened a criminal probe into whether traders are manipulating the price of Bitcoin and other digital currencies, dramatically ratcheting up U.S. scrutiny of red-hot markets that critics say are rife with misconduct, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. From the report: The investigation is focused on illegal practices that can influence prices -- such as spoofing, or flooding the market with fake orders to trick other traders into buying or selling, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the review is private. Federal prosecutors are working with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a financial regulator that oversees derivatives tied to Bitcoin, the people said. Authorities worry that virtual currencies are susceptible to fraud for multiple reasons: skepticism that all exchanges are actively pursuing cheaters, wild price swings that could make it easy to push valuations around and a lack of regulations like the ones that govern stocks and other assets.
Where is the criminal fraud investigation into Tether?
Are (any) fiat-currency and (any) cryptocurrency really equivalent, as cryptocurrency fans claim?
For example, US Dollar and Bitcoin are really equals?
Value/validity/authorization of US dollar is provided/guaranteed by US Government (and in-turn whole US Public)!
Also, not to mention, US Dollars in any US Bank is insured by US Government!
What authorization/guarantee/insurance is behind Bitcoin? Nothing!
Sorry but that is the end of discussion then!
Why do you think Satoshi Nakamoto is really hiding his identity, if Bitcoin is really such a great innovation?
He is just someone does not like media/fan attention?
Or, could it be really because Bitcoin (and all cryptocurrencies followed it) are actually Ponzi Schemes?
(So he knew very well that law enforcement would come after him sooner or later?!)
If so-called cryptocurrencies are really good innovation, why they attract so many criminals/criminal activity?
Could it really be because, all cryptocurrencies themselves are scams, and that is why they attract all kinds of criminals/criminal activity?
If so-called cryptocurrencies are really currency, why no company/store can use Bitcoin as currency anymore?
Because the price of Bitcoin proved to be extremely unstable to use as a currency?
Would the result be different, if Bitcoin replaced by any other "cryptocurrency"?
Aren't all work the same way?
If so-called cryptocurrencies are really money; isn't people issuing their own money, illegal already, in all countries?
If so then, why they are still not banned in all countries?
Or, they are not actually virtual currency but virtual investment?
But, if they are actually investment, why we need/want them?
What would happen to world economy, if people invested in virtual investments, instead of real investments?
Or, all so-called cryptocurrencies are actually just a modified (made decentralized and paying variable interest) Ponzi Schemes?
(Price of cryptocurrencies would keep increasing in the long term (by their design), so it is equivalent of paying variable interest to all long term investors.)
Also, since all so-called cryptocurrencies are actually financial scams (Ponzi Schemes), that means, they cannot be the solution for any of existing financial problems of our world!
As more and more people invest in cryptocurrencies, it will become harder and harder to ban their trading everywhere (because people invested in cryptocurrencies, would try to stop anyone trying to ban cryptocurrencies)!
All cryptocurrencies need to be banned globally before it is too late!
Anytime that has traded crypto can see that. Now let's see if this investigation is a sham, or if it'll actually fix things.
Note that most of the exchanges are not based in the US. So how they would fix things remains to be seen.
The investigation is focused on illegal practices that can influence prices -- such as spoofing, or flooding the market with fake orders to trick other traders into buying or selling...
So, just like the stock market.
Does this mean the US government is officially recognizing Bitcoin as a currency? A stock?
Or would is anything where there is "flooding the market with fake orders to trick other traders into buying/selling" a crime?
If someone did this with kids trading cards, or something like Pokeman, or Magic the Gathering cards- would that also incite an investigation with the government? Or- is it significant that they are investigating this as it means they now "Recognise" bitcoin?
"That's the way to do it" - Punch
Next they'll be investigating homicides committed inside Grand Theft Auto video games.
Straight outta the pennystock playbooks before the SEC finally brought the hammer out.
At least the GTA cops would be unable to shoot real black boys. Sounds like a good idea.
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
By allowing so-called "market makers" to naked short and then fail to deliver (FTD). Regulation SHO didnt change anything. They just put them on a naughty list, big deal. It's really no surpirsie Larry Silverstein made 100 million off WTC7. Some people like the Clintons can get away with crime, other people cant. Thats the definition of injustice i think. ae911truth dot org
If it led to people actually dying in real life you bet they would.
Cryptocurrency frauds and thefts have actually taken billions of dollars from people's pockets.
A valid comparison to Grand Theft Auto would be the schemes for accumulating and manipulating currencies that only exist in videogames and are not convertible at all the real money.
A good comparison is the Linden Dollar in Second Life. No one regulates the Linden Dollar - but the Linden Dollar does not leave the game, and is not convertible to hard currency. There is a limited Linden Exchange in which players can buy and sell Linden Dollars from each other, exactly like trading cards.
But you will notice that "loot boxes" purchased with real world money are now being treated as regular gambling in many places.
Starships were meant to fly, Hands up and touch the sky - Nicky Minaj
Ultimately they're selling numbers. The blockchain to establish ownership adds nothing, it could be an agreed central server, recording ownership, for all it matters.
The blockchain adds nothing, since *person* is not *key*, so the ownership is only as secure as the map between those two. If you replaced the blockchain with a server selling numbers would that make it better? No.
What if the server only had a limited number of numbers, or only sold a limited number of numbers a day? It would be as much a non-"fiat" currency as bitcoin...
It's the same thing, a market where idiots buy magic numbers with currency that could be used to buy useful goods and services.
How much is a number worth? Nothing.
How about a criminal probe into The Fed?
It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
I thought they ruled these as property.
But you will notice that "loot boxes" purchased with real world money are now being treated as regular gambling in many places.
Because it is a gamble.
1. You pay with real money, and don't know what you get.
2. Some loot box items can be traded for real money, some are worthless. So it is a gamble.
The loot box might as well contain "a poker hand" or "a lottery number". Might make it clearer for some.
This was the inevitable outcome of permitting electronic currency trading on the investment market. These guys are idiots for even allowing this trading to happen!
The users of any electronic currency want a currency to be stable so that it gets wide adoption and every one can be comfortable with using and saving it for retirement, etc.
The market investors want the currency to be unstable. If the currency was stable nobody could fleece any money out of all the other traders, so the investment market desires the currency to be unstable.
The problem is the currency only has a subjective value based upon what other people think it is worth, and that value is always going to be undermined by the investment market where big chunks of currency can be gamed to force market swings, which is exactly what the users do not want!!!
1) its a share of a company regardless of its PE.
2) its price is based on expected *future* profit, e.g. Google's PE was well over 100 early in its life and it was a good investment.
Bitcoin? Well that's just a number someone claims is a magic currency. It's neither a currency nor is it a non-fiat currency. i.e. its sold on fraud.
Why or how does it make it illegal? It isn't a security...
No one regulates the Linden Dollar - but the Linden Dollar does not leave the game, and is not convertible to hard currency.
Don't be so sure.
Any trader knows HFTs have been spoofing orders for over 10 years... the only difference is bitcoin crap yields profits for market outsiders. Looks like selective enforcement.