Hi BitcoinXio,Hi Asher, thanks for doing this AMA!
I'd really like to get your opinion on the recent events in Australia where banks have suddenly shut down accounts with bitcoin companies.
Reference: http://bitcoinx.io/news/articles/the-bi ... australia/
How did this impact your business then, and is it impacting it currently? Where do you see bitcoin exchange services in Australia in the near future? It appears the climate is extremely challenging and hard for any bitcoin businesses and startups to grow there.
Thanks!
I think for existing alt-coins, none really hold a candle to bitcoin (even in 5 years). I do believe there will be competing digital currencies -- some of the popular ones will likely be permissioned systems (centralised) -- even though they run on similar blockchain tech.Which digital currency (litecoin,dogecoin, peercoin etc) do you think will be the biggest competitor to bitcoin in 5 years
1. There have been quite a few bitcoin startups here in Australia (especially compared on a per capita basis). But the market is small, and there is not a lot of startup ecosystem to help propel winners forward (however this is changing). Australia is still a good place to start off, but not great for huge opportunity.Hi Asher,
How does the entrepreneurial atmosphere compare between UK and Australia, especially in the Bitcoin space?
Is your EFT swipe card a success in Australia?
Cheers
Hi Roger,Hi Asher,
Thanks for agreeing to do the AMA even when you knew there would be some very difficult questions.
What are your thoughts on what appears to be very damning evidence linking your co-founder, Zhou Tong, to the Bitcoinica hack in the video below?
If CoinJar were to become very successful, does Zhou Tong have any plans to try to make the victims of his last company whole?
Do you have any other thoughts to share regarding the Bitcoinica mess?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AypRF9q0llU
Thanks, Edward. I hope we can continue our track record of being a good and trustworthy service.Just here to say great job with your service. Used it for a long time. Quick & easy and the customer service & user experience was perfect. Recommend to all Ausralians who are looking to quickly switch fiat to Bitcoin or vice versa.
Hi Jan,Hi there!
Do you see Bitcoin as a tool to help poor people? I mean do you see BTC as way to help those 2 billions of adults that are unbanked right now?
Thanks.
http://www.crowbe.com
Zhou Tong is guilty.Hi Roger,Hi Asher,
Thanks for agreeing to do the AMA even when you knew there would be some very difficult questions.
What are your thoughts on what appears to be very damning evidence linking your co-founder, Zhou Tong, to the Bitcoinica hack in the video below?
If CoinJar were to become very successful, does Zhou Tong have any plans to try to make the victims of his last company whole?
Do you have any other thoughts to share regarding the Bitcoinica mess?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AypRF9q0llU
1. The video above has attracted some questions, even by our investors. I have done my best to reach out to parties who have a strong opinion on the video (including yourself) to dissect and understand what is being shown. The overriding response is it is not conclusive proof of wrongdoing. It however does emphasise the large amount of the bitcoin economy that flowed through Mt Gox and Bitcoinica at that time (more than half) -- to the extent that it was possible to find 'tainted' coins being used in each platform.
2. Bitcoinica LP existed in the real world, with real people behind it who were responsible for the path of the company. ZhouTong, although the originator of the platform, was not one of those people and has never been named in any legal documents as being responsible for the company. It would make little sense for him to 'make victims of his last company whole'.
There are plenty of other identities that are in the Bitcoinica saga who DO have clear responsibilities from being associated with Bitcoinica LP: Patrick, Donald, Amir, Tihan, PKF Corporate Recovery etc. If evidence is 'damning' I suggest you follow up with real world authorities and these individuals. Internet sleuthing only gets you so far when you want answers.
3. The court of public opinion can be brutally wrong. Roger, I am reminded of your initial Mt Gox video where you endorsed them for solvency. While your facts may have been accurate -- the representation missed its mark (bonus points for manning up and admitting this in your follow-up video). For would-be internet trolls and sleuths, I reiterate to take your findings to legal authorities if you feel strongly about evidence you encounter -- Reddit or any internet forum will not provide closure for your circumstance.
+1Zhou Tong is guilty.
Hi Roger,
1. The video above has attracted some questions, even by our investors. I have done my best to reach out to parties who have a strong opinion on the video (including yourself) to dissect and understand what is being shown. The overriding response is it is not conclusive proof of wrongdoing. It however does emphasise the large amount of the bitcoin economy that flowed through Mt Gox and Bitcoinica at that time (more than half) -- to the extent that it was possible to find 'tainted' coins being used in each platform.
2. Bitcoinica LP existed in the real world, with real people behind it who were responsible for the path of the company. ZhouTong, although the originator of the platform, was not one of those people and has never been named in any legal documents as being responsible for the company. It would make little sense for him to 'make victims of his last company whole'.
There are plenty of other identities that are in the Bitcoinica saga who DO have clear responsibilities from being associated with Bitcoinica LP: Patrick, Donald, Amir, Tihan, PKF Corporate Recovery etc. If evidence is 'damning' I suggest you follow up with real world authorities and these individuals. Internet sleuthing only gets you so far when you want answers.
3. The court of public opinion can be brutally wrong. Roger, I am reminded of your initial Mt Gox video where you endorsed them for solvency. While your facts may have been accurate -- the representation missed its mark (bonus points for manning up and admitting this in your follow-up video). For would-be internet trolls and sleuths, I reiterate to take your findings to legal authorities if you feel strongly about evidence you encounter -- Reddit or any internet forum will not provide closure for your circumstance.
You insult yourself and your family to say otherwise.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=95795.0
I do not believe he committed any wrongdoing. I do not believe he was involved in instigating any security breaches at Bitcoinica. I think that's a pretty definitive answer from me.I'm sorry, Asher, but you are doing yourself and your company an absolute disservice by the way you are dealing with the questions regarding Zhou Tong. I only have a very superficial knowledge of the issue as a whole, so I have no feelings as to his apparent guilt or innocence. But your responses to the questions Roger asked are piss-weak and totally non-committal. As such it will make you seem non-fussed to have a criminal as a business partner to those people who have already judged him guilty in the court of "public opinion" and to someone like me, who has no feelings either way, they seem like very strange responses.
I would imagine if your business partner is innocent (or you think he is) you would come out defending him. Or if you thought he was guilty you would distance yourself from him. You have done neither in your answers.
In response to the first question - What do you think of the damning evidence in the video? Your response is essentially well its not really that damning and if it was people would go to the police. In response to the question will he make the victims of Bitcoinica whole? This is a yes or no question. You should answer it "no" if you know he will not do this (or if you think he is innocent) instead of recommending others who might be better to go after.
As an Australian it would be great to have trustworthy companies in the Bitcoin space - which coinjar seemed to be (to me) until you did this AMA and I found out about Zhou Tong.
Do you think he stole anything from anyone?
1. Not particularly. EMV chip cards are predominant in quite a few countries already and it doesn't look to have spurred adoption of bitcoin. High-risk merchants (online) usually have a fat profit margin that they can work out with their payment processor a buffer for chargebacks.Asher -
Thanks for taking time to interact with us this way.
Q1. With the recent ruling on EMV chip cards, Merchants are now liable, do you believe this will encourage some merchants to adopt bitcoin?
Q2. In the US there are so many ways to pay for things, do you think companies like Coinjar can edge it's way in among the Venmo, Paypal, Dwolla, SquareCash, type apps?
Q3. Do you or would you own a Tesla? As you might notice by my name I am a huge fan of them
Thanks again!
Exactly this! Thanks for doing an AMA and raising awareness that Zhou Tong is involved with coinjar! Hopefully the more people aware will mean less people will use your services.As an Australian it would be great to have trustworthy companies in the Bitcoin space - which coinjar seemed to be (to me) until you did this AMA and I found out about Zhou Tong.
I think it would even more stable with years being pass.Hey Asher
I live in Brisbane so I use CoinJar for all my Bitcoin purchases. It's a great system so thanks for your hard work.
In yet to find an Australian Bitcoin exchange which is reliable, trustworthy and secure. Does CoinJar have any plans to expand into operating a full exchange like Gemini/Coinbase?
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