The Bitcoin Forum

As many of you may know BTCS Inc. (ticker: BTCS, http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=btcs&ql=1) is the first U.S. pure-play bitcoin and blockchain focused company. Our company was founded in 2013 by two NASA engineers who created Bitcoinshop.us LLC after seeing a void in the market i.e. no way to spend bitcoins. I joined in early 2014 and helped take the company public and have drastically changed the business model over the last two years. Our current business model is focused around creating a vertically integrated mining company through our pending merger with Spondoolies. We moved into the mining space while others were leaving and believe we are well positioned to rapidly scale our operations. Additionally, BTCS is also the lead and / or strategic investor in numerous industry startup such as GoCoin, Spondoolies and Gem which just announced an over $7m funding.

As for me I’m an engineer and finance professional with experience in the semi-conductor industry and almost 10 years of investment banking experience. I’m very excited for 2016 and hope I can make BTCS the first company to list on a major exchange such as the Nasdaq or NYSE.

Happy to be here today answering any questions about myself or BTCS.

AMA!

Thanks for doing an AMA! So in the new direction you are heading, are you focusing on selling the spondoolies miners when you're talking about moving into mining, or are you investing in mining equipment to profit from the mining power?

As a company that is actively mining bitcoin, how will the reward halving in 2016 impact your strategy this year?

Through our pending merger with Sponoolies we plan to vertically integrated our mining operations. As a combined company we would design, build and deploy mining hardware. As a public company its our responsibility to create value for our shareholders so yes we plan to profit from the mining. We also plan to sell mining equipment to the public to ensure that the blockchain remains decentralized.

More information on our strategy can be found in our corporate presentation here: http://www.btcs.com/deck-new.pdf

You can also see a tour of our mining facility below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=85&v=AWGXSgkIXOc

As a company that is actively mining bitcoin, how will the reward halving in 2016 impact your strategy this year?

Great question. Its possible that the impact of the halving may be offset by higher bitcoin prices as there are less newly issued bitcoin hitting the market from miners. However in the long run its our belief that higher cost miners will likely go offline and only the most efficient will remain. Slide 27 in our presentation illustrates our analysis of what may happen in the short run http://www.btcs.com/deck-new.pdf. The pending merger with Spondoolies brings together leading edge IP, an amazing technical team and the operation expertise on the deployment side. We outline our competitive advantage on slide 22.

First, thank you for publicly taking questions.

I have a few questions about cash flow: mining generates some cash, but only in the range of hundreds of thousands of dollars. How else does the company generate cash flow? How does it intend to raise the funds necessary to repay the $1.5m recently borrowed?

Also, when do you think the Spondoolies merger will be completed? Selling their products would generate good cash flow.

Also, do you still see the company as a private equity fund? Have any investments been sold?

First, thank you for publicly taking questions.

I have a few questions about cash flow: mining generates some cash, but only in the range of hundreds of thousands of dollars. How else does the company generate cash flow? How does it intend to raise the funds necessary to repay the $1.5m recently borrowed?

Also, when do you think the Spondoolies merger will be completed? Selling their products would generate good cash flow.

Also, do you still see the company as a private equity fund? Have any investments been sold?

The majority of our current revenue is derived from our mining operations and we have seen tremendous growth in this segment. Our facility in NC has 3mw of power available and we are only using about 0.65mw so we have the capacity to scale to 3mw with negligible build-out costs. Moreover using the 3mw currently available would still only occupy about 1/6 of the building so we have ample room to further expand. In terms of the $1.5m convertible note there are three options to full fill our obligations: 1) repaid it with cash flow from operations, 2) convert to common stock, or 3) repay it with proceeds from an offering (the note becomes payable within 3 days of completing a fully underwritten offering). We have been tirelessly working to address SEC questions on our resale S1 which we initially filed in June of 2015. All the shares covered by the resale S1 are freely tradeable pursuant to rule 144 and are already included on the share count so its non-dilutive. The purpose of pushing so hard on the resale S1 is clear any questions the SEC may have such that we may do a primary offering potentially in connection with an up-listing to the NYSE or Nasdaq. If BTCS clears an S1 with the SEC we will be the first company in the industry to do so and likely set a precedence as to certain disclosures.

First off both BTCS and Spondoolies are fully committed to the merger. As for timing we are waiting on rulings from the Office of Chief Scientist (OCS) and the Israeli Tax Authority these are the key conditions that need to be satisfied in order to close (more detail on this is on the 8k here: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/ ... orm8-k.htm). Spondoolies was only able to start seeking these approvals after we signed the definitive merger agreement on September 21, 2015 so it hasn't been all that long especially considering these are government agencies. As a data point BTCS has been working on it's resale S1 for over 7 months and it still hasn't gone effective.

We currently aren't making any further investments as our core focus at the moment is taking the steps required to rapidly scale our mining business, up list to a major exchange and close the merger with Spondoolies. However growth by acquisition is something we are very interested in and seeding leading companies is a great way to get a seat at the table and provide our investor base broader exposure to the industry in a tradeable form. We have not sold any of our investments.

Wow! That is all very informative - thank you.

What stands in the way of ramping up mining to the full 3mw capacity? Is the constraint lack of mining rigs?

Wow! That is all very informative - thank you.

What stands in the way of ramping up mining to the full 3mw capacity? Is the constraint lack of mining rigs?

The main constraint to growth is capital. Bitfury has raised $60m, KNC has raised $30m and BTCS/Spondoolies on a pro-forma combined basis has only raised about $16m. Our business model should work extremely well at scale (if we are cost competitive and depending on the price of bitcoin) however getting to scale requires additional capital. Much of our efforts in 2015 was putting the pieces in place to allow for rapid growth. Ideally we would expand well beyond 3mw.

Hello Charles, happy new year

my usual question:

I was re-reading Antifragile by iconoclast thinker Nassim Taleb recently. He writes

"Never ask anyone for their opinion [...] Just ask them what they have -or don't have- in their portfolio"

I have come to think it's a very relevant question and you can better weight people's opinions having an idea of how many Bitcoins they hold (or do not hold.) So Instead of asking their opinion on bitcoin, I'm now asking every participants the same question:

- Do you mind to tell us which percentage of your personal net worth and/or liquid assets you hold in Bitcoins ?

Hello Charles, happy new year

my usual question:

I was re-reading Antifragile by iconoclast thinker Nassim Taleb recently. He writes

"Never ask anyone for their opinion [...] Just ask them what they have -or don't have- in their portfolio"

I have come to think it's a very relevant question and you can better weight people's opinions having an idea of how many Bitcoins they hold (or do not hold.) So Instead of asking their opinion on bitcoin, I'm now asking every participants the same question:

- Do you mind to tell us which percentage of your personal net worth and/or liquid assets you hold in Bitcoins ?

Fair question. I currently have limited holdings in bitcoin. The main use case for bitcoin is speculation and the belief it will go up. I'm very optimistic that mass adoption will occur for bitcoin as a currency but it will take time and will likely start in areas with limited banking options and happen when volatility comes out of the market. Additionally, bitcoins value may be driven by the value the blockchain can create in securing distributed applications.

It seems though that your underlying question may not really be about bitcoin but skin in the game as to the technology and/or BTCS Inc. Currently I own 26% of BTCS Inc. (~41m shares) worth almost $5m which represents well over 90% of my net assets. Since starting with BTCS Inc. I've increased my ownership in the company by almost 70% and have participated in all but the last financing ( see form 4's here: http://www.secform4.com/insider-trading/1436229.htm). When I evaluate my personal holdings and financial goals for my family I simply don't need further exposure to bitcoin. I view bitcoin and BTCS Inc. as being extremely correlated.

Charles,

It's well know the pace for Bitcoin tech greatly varies depending upon the part of the market being covered. But when it comes to mining it's break neck or you're left behind with many expensive paperweights.

Spondoolies announced their SP50 rig back in September and began taking emails for bulk purchases. The video posted above dated October 7th shows the NC facility preparing for SP50 equipment. With this in mind...

What has held back delivery?

Is everything still on track for the NC facility to have around ten or more SP50's rolled out by the end of January? (Per the additional hash power expected to be added in January. --12/22/15 IR email.)

If so, what is the estimated lead time and schedule for additional mining equipment to be added provided capital increases as needed?

I appreciate the time you've taken to do this AMA and look forward to additional information and videos as they become available.

Charles,

Thanks for doing this AMA. I am currently a shareholder in your company. I was curious as to what percentage (if any) of the bitcoins you mine are you NOT converting to fiat currency and just keeping on balance sheet as an Asset. I am trying to get a handle on potential market value of company, if bitcoins increase in value over the next 5 years.

Thanks.

Charles,

It's well know the pace for Bitcoin tech greatly varies depending upon the part of the market being covered. But when it comes to mining it's break neck or you're left behind with many expensive paperweights.

Spondoolies announced their SP50 rig back in September and began taking emails for bulk purchases. The video posted above dated October 7th shows the NC facility preparing for SP50 equipment. With this in mind...

What has held back delivery?

Is everything still on track for the NC facility to have around ten or more SP50's rolled out by the end of January? (Per the additional hash power expected to be added in January. --12/22/15 IR email.)

If so, what is the estimated lead time and schedule for additional mining equipment to be added provided capital increases as needed?

I appreciate the time you've taken to do this AMA and look forward to additional information and videos as they become available.

The delay has been a function of capital. We were seeking $5m in funding per Slide 6 of our October corporate presentation which we filed with the SEC on 10/26/2015. We raised much less ~$1.4m on 12/16/2015. A good comparison to mining are smart phones they have a short product life and innovation is rapid. Apple has been able to do very well with the iphone because they have the right team to design / build and have a great reputation with consumers. In my opinion ASIC servers are similar to smart phones in terms of product life cycle. Most importantly though I believe companies are built by people and between Spondoolies and BTCS we have a truly amazing team which is well positioned to innovate for the long run despite any short term delays.

As for specific timelines, deployment etc. I can't disclose on a forum such information needs to be done pursuant to Reg FD etc. You'll have to keep an eye out for 8k's and press releases.

Charles,

Thanks for doing this AMA. I am currently a shareholder in your company. I was curious as to what percentage (if any) of the bitcoins you mine are you NOT converting to fiat currency and just keeping on balance sheet as an Asset. I am trying to get a handle on potential market value of company, if bitcoins increase in value over the next 5 years.

Thanks.

First off thanks for being a supporter and shareholder of the company. Unfortunately I have to give you a vague answer. Basically it depends and will change especially over the next 1-5 years. Currently there are no hedging mechanism with acceptable counter party risk. We therefor can't go long with downside protection as we need to cover FIAT expenses for ongoing operations. Mining works best at scale and when vertically integrated; both Bitfury and KNC have proved out this model. If we're successfully able to scale our business, and we believe we have built the foundation to do so, we'll have much more freedom to evaluate the appropriate level of bitcoin we want to carry on our balance sheet.

Nice to have you here!

Does spoondlies tech plans on going for other algos ie the infamous X11 chips ?

What are plans for GoCoin to monetize or take the spot Blockchain has?


Can you describe a bit how the referal program fo GoCoi nworks?

Nice to have you here!

Does spoondlies tech plans on going for other algos ie the infamous X11 chips ?

What are plans for GoCoin to monetize or take the spot Blockchain has?


Can you describe a bit how the referal program fo GoCoi nworks?

Not familiar with the X11 chips so I don't think it's in the cards. As for the GoCoin questions they are better suited for GoCoin. It wouldn't be appropriate for me to discuss their business on a forum.

@Charles, Thanks for all you are doing in the space!!

Questions:

I would like to see the US Government heavily subsidize mining here in the USA. I mean HEAVILY!!! Tax exemptions, free land, grants, university funding etc!!! How do you feel about that?

Many things become centralized over time (straight from James D'angelo's mouth (https://youtu.be/_RC8wEL2r9s). Is it possible that with Bitcoin we see never ending swings from decentralization to less decentralization, never developing a status quo?

@Charles, Thanks for all you are doing in the space!!

Questions:

I would like to see the US Government heavily subsidize mining here in the USA. I mean HEAVILY!!! Tax exemptions, free land, grants, university funding etc!!! How do you feel about that?

Many things become centralized over time (straight from James D'angelo's mouth (https://youtu.be/_RC8wEL2r9s). Is it possible that with Bitcoin we see never ending swings from decentralization to less decentralization, never developing a status quo?

It would be great if the US government subsidized mining but I doubt it will happen.

The concept of mining, centralization and economic theory need a much longer answer then I can address here. However here are some of very quick thoughts. Mining has already become centralized specifically in the manufacturers (also Chinese pools but different discussion point). Right now there are a limited number of major players, Bitfury, KNC, Bitmain, 21 Inc. and Spondoolies. Bitmain is the only one currently selling to the public and Bitfury just recently announced they would sell their chip. Given the product lifestyle of ASIC servers if all manufactures decided not to sell then over time they could potentially control the network assuming no new entrants. In this simplified scenario a small handful of manufacturers would produce better equipment and higher cost operators with no intellectual property, just low cost data centers, running older equipment would be forced to shut. While building low cost data centers at scale is a barrier to entry it is a low barrier compared to designing and building the most cost efficient ASIC servers. In this scenario the vertically integrated manufactures are similar to Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover and could effectively own the market. This however is a major oversimplification and ignores many things including the fact that as the network becomes centralized it is put at risk. If for instance Visa, Mastercard, Amex and Discover all merged tomorrow they could effectively increase credit card fees well beyond 3% and consumers would be forced to pay, obviously this won't happen because of anti-trust laws. If the same thing happened in mining it would put the network at risk and devalue bitcoin so there is an economic incentive for the major players to maintain a decentralized network and high value of bitcoin.

Hopefully this helps and again these are just a few thoughts on a very complex topic.

As a side note and in the essence of keeping things informal I'm a pilot as well (single engine land and glider).

As a side note and in the essence of keeping things informal I'm a pilot as well (single engine land and glider).

PM me and I'll get you a ride in the Pilatus PC12. Fun little plane. Also would you like to do a "Hangout" for a few minutes at our February Bitcoin Meetup? We are a small group... usually about 30 to 50 people show up to the meetups but we are growing fast and we are seeing adoption in our area with recent media attention. Let me know.

As a side note and in the essence of keeping things informal I'm a pilot as well (single engine land and glider).

PM me and I'll get you a ride in the Pilatus PC12. Fun little plane. Also would you like to do a "Hangout" for a few minutes at our February Bitcoin Meetup? We are a small group... usually about 30 to 50 people show up to the meetups but we are growing fast and we are seeing adoption in our area with recent media attention. Let me know.

Thanks happy to remotely join a meet up. Will PM you.

Through our pending merger with Sponoolies we plan to vertically integrated our mining operations. As a combined company we would design, build and deploy mining hardware. As a public company its our responsibility to create value for our shareholders so yes we plan to profit from the mining. We also plan to sell mining equipment to the public to ensure that the blockchain remains decentralized.

More information on our strategy can be found in our corporate presentation here: http://www.btcs.com/deck-new.pdf

You can also see a tour of our mining facility below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=85&v=AWGXSgkIXOc

Thank you for the video!

Charles,
I see you are expanding your mining operations.
We have a Data Center built for you!

For Immediate Release:
3Mw Turn-Key Colocation Bitcoin Data Center available for Mining Server Operators to Plug & Play.
Brand new State of the Art DC in Central WA with Occupancy Permit by 4/15/16.
Bitcoin Miner ready, willing & able (servers ready to plug & play + immediate power up to full capacity)
Total Power Pricing*:
$0.06/Kwh* (taking at least ½ DC’s Capacity)
$0.07/Kwh* (taking less than ½ capacity but more than 20%)
$0.0565/Kwh* (Operator take 100% capacity)
*Actual Power is at ~$0.023/Kwh; Power Pathway & Distribution makes up balance of Total Power Cost.
Rentable Space: $1.25/sq.ft. per month (must include proportionate share of common area)
We have installed a 3000 AMP Main with 7 APC Power Management Modules (PMMs) configured by Schneider Elect.
These PMMs can manage each 30 AMP circuit remotely via web portal.
28 Exhaust Fans with over 400,000 cfm capacity for maintaining stated server temperatures
Over 200 Industrial Air Filters Opposite Exhaust Fans
24/7/365 Video Surveillance with remote viewing via web portal.
Fiber Optic ISP (for extremely fast data transmission)
Ladder Trays with mounted 30 AMP female twist-lock receptacles (maximum Rated Capacity of DC)
Truly Plug & Play Ready for your Racks, PUD & Servers. Brand New 6,000 ft. building
First to Qualify, First to be Served: Must be ready to occupy with Server installation and power up to full capacity within 45 days.

Serious Interested Parties please contact Bradley Glaves, Principle via email: bglaves@evergreencapholdings.com
I will then send you an info package and a Letter of Intent to Lease License MLDC-1.
Security deposit accompanying LOI will be escrowed at an Insured Tittle & Escrow Company while you are qualifying for our Data Center Lease License Agreement.

See Interior Build-Out Video 3/16/16 at: https://youtu.be/71lkTegoBgU

Charles,
I see you are expanding your mining operations.
We have a Data Center built for you!

For Immediate Release:
3Mw Turn-Key Colocation Bitcoin Data Center available for Mining Server Operators to Plug & Play.
Brand new State of the Art DC in Central WA with Occupancy Permit by 4/15/16.
Bitcoin Miner ready, willing & able (servers ready to plug & play + immediate power up to full capacity)
Total Power Pricing*:
$0.06/Kwh* (taking at least ½ DC’s Capacity)
$0.07/Kwh* (taking less than ½ capacity but more than 20%)
$0.0565/Kwh* (Operator take 100% capacity)
*Actual Power is at ~$0.023/Kwh; Power Pathway & Distribution makes up balance of Total Power Cost.
Rentable Space: $1.25/sq.ft. per month (must include proportionate share of common area)
We have installed a 3000 AMP Main with 7 APC Power Management Modules (PMMs) configured by Schneider Elect.
These PMMs can manage each 30 AMP circuit remotely via web portal.
28 Exhaust Fans with over 400,000 cfm capacity for maintaining stated server temperatures
Over 200 Industrial Air Filters Opposite Exhaust Fans
24/7/365 Video Surveillance with remote viewing via web portal.
Fiber Optic ISP (for extremely fast data transmission)
Ladder Trays with mounted 30 AMP female twist-lock receptacles (maximum Rated Capacity of DC)
Truly Plug & Play Ready for your Racks, PUD & Servers. Brand New 6,000 ft. building
First to Qualify, First to be Served: Must be ready to occupy with Server installation and power up to full capacity within 45 days.

Serious Interested Parties please contact Bradley Glaves, Principle via email: bglaves@evergreencapholdings.com
I will then send you an info package and a Letter of Intent to Lease License MLDC-1.
Security deposit accompanying LOI will be escrowed at an Insured Tittle & Escrow Company while you are qualifying for our Data Center Lease License Agreement.

See Interior Build-Out Video 3/16/16 at: https://youtu.be/71lkTegoBgU

Too small!

Charles, if you are serious about expanding mining operations - let's work together to raise $500M for mining expansion.

Bitcoin needs an extremely large-scale US based mining company.

Charles,

I am a large investor in BTCS. Upon hearing of the Spondoolies-Tech bankruptcy filing and realizing what that meant for the pending merger, I was disappointed. The reason I invested heavily into your company was due to my belief that it is of geopolitical importance that the US reasserts itself as a large contributor to the network hashrate. I thought the merger with Spondoolies would bring this into fruition and position BTCS to be the major contributor in this effort. Even though the collapse of this merger puts the company at a temporary disadvantage, I still believe it is possible for BTCS to be a major player in the revival of Bitcoin mining in the US. I will say right here that I believe myself to be in the top one percent of the largest BTCS shareholders, and I do not plan on selling any of my shares, because I believe your company is the best bet to achieve this goal. From reading your latest shareholder update on May 25th, it comes across that you are shifting your focus to Ethereum mining. I hope this is simply a diversification and not a company-wide redirection. In my opinion, it would be a critical mistake to give up on the original plan of becoming a vertically integrated ASIC manufacturer / transaction verification services company. It is my hope that BTCS is attempting to purchase Spondoolies' IP and hire the former technically critical employees of Spondoolies to fulfill this outcome. If you are unsuccessful in purchasing Spondoolies' IP, then I believe it would be the best course of action to hire your own ASIC engineers and continue down the path of fabricating your own ASIC devices at your North Carolina facility. I was hoping to hear a more detailed update regarding the situation with the Spondoolies bankruptcy, its effect on the company, and a plan for going forward. I understand the necessity of privacy during certain business proceedings, but I hope in the future when the dust settles that you will provide an explanation to your shareholders regarding the details of what exactly happened with the merger and Spondoolies' bankruptcy.

Sincerely,

Large BTCS Shareholder

Hi, good evening Charles,

when I get onto bitcoin.com, the first step asking is to select a wallet, then select an exchanger. The question is, are there differences between a wallet selected from what is provided on the bitcoin.com and the wallet of a exchanger in which I have a account?

Thank you in advance and have a good weekend!

David Dai

Hi, good evening Charles,

when I get onto bitcoin.com, the first step asking is to select a wallet, then select an exchanger. The question is, are there differences between a wallet selected from what is provided on the bitcoin.com and the wallet of a exchanger in which I have a account?

Thank you in advance and have a good weekend!

David Dai

David, I noticed you asked this question in a pretty old "Ask Me Anything" so being unsure this is monitored by Charles Allen (BTW if you are reading this Charles Hello, Hope all is doing well... would love to have you back again for a hangouts session... we are doing better now with the live video) I will answer your question best I understand it.

Yes there are many difference between ALL wallets especially comparing wallets you fully control (i.e. Mycelium, BlockChain, Airbitz etc) and wallets that are custodial accounts (i.e. Coinbase, Gemini, Kraken although it can be argued easily these are not wallets but the custodians provide wallet services) and the main difference is that you control your keys with your wallets and on custodial wallets they custodian controls your keys (access credentials) and there for by law (intellectual property law in most areas) the custodian is the owner of "your" bitcoin.

I use a variety of Bitcoin Wallets. For daily speculation I will use a Gemini Wallet on their exchange, for shopping (like on Purse.io) I will use a Mycelium, Bread or Airbitz Wallet and then for long term storage I will use a Keep Key or Trezor Wallet.

Hope that answers your question.????

Hi, Ronnieb,

Thank you so much for paying attention to my question. Your explanation has dismissed the doubts I have regarding wallets between common standard wallets and the ones with exchanges! Thank you again！

Best regards
David

Would you care to give us any update on new activity happening within the company? AKA How are we looking bud?

Please am new on this stuff kindly help me,
Please how do I create a wallet