The Kreuzberg area of Berlin has the highest density of businesses accepting Bitcoin in the world. This is the closest I have seen to Bitcoin being accepted in a manner close to money. Unfortunately, I expect governments to attempt to smash Bitcoin by closing down Bitcoin/currency exchanges. If bitcoin wins government loses control of money and they are going to fight very hard before that occurs.
There are plenty of dealers here in Zurich who will take your paper Francs for instant BTC transfer.
ReplyDeletehttps://localbitcoins.com/location/CH/Zurich/
dont need mtgox...
Math-based currencies do not need legalized exchange businesses to survive. Yes, attacks against the exchanges can hurt the current demand (depressing the current price) but they would still exist in the underground economy.
ReplyDeleteThe demand for a more efficient anonymous currency would remain.
What underground marketeer would want to carry around bags of national currencies when he can have a hidden phone app or brainwallet with access to enormous wealth that is instantly transferable to almost any spot on the planet?
Like any banned commodity, individual exchanges would still communicate the exchange rates of these math-based currencies. There are no “legal” exchange businesses that publish prices for “illegal” items yet “illegal” buyers and sellers openly publish their prices on “darknet” marketplaces like Silk Road.
There are already “sellers” of national currencies, “sellers” of bitcoins and “sellers” of illegal drugs on Silk Road and similar websites. Each of these commodities can be delivered with little chance of the sender being discovered when proper measures are taken.
Seller reputations in these “darknet” communities would become even more valuable. Buyers would still have to worry about “sting” operations.
There will always be a demand for these math-based currencies that can instantly transfer value across distance without third-party interference.
Since the world now operates on “internet time” we can only hope that the spread of math-based currencies, and their recognized benefits to humanity, continue faster than the enemies of human life can react – essentially becoming ubiquitous and “too big to stop”. Otherwise, they will be relegated to the underground economy and exist at an albeit smaller scale – which is only a 10 trillion dollar economy.
Source:
Bitcoin's Formidable Attack Vectors
http://wp.me/p1adwa-55