California legalizes Bitcoin and other virtual currencies, while Scrypt coins such as Litecoin and Dogecoin are taking heavy hits as new ASIC miners arrive. Here are the cryptocurrency highlights of week 27:
- The auction of 30,000 Bitcoins seized from online drug market place Silk Road was won by venture capitalist Tim Draper. The coins were split into blocks of 3,000 coins each, but Draper managed to get all 30,000 Bitcoins now worth $19 million.
- Tim Draper also made the headlines with another remarkable project: an initiative to split California into six smaller states. Silicon Valley would be one of the six states, and would instantly become one if the richest states in the U.S.
- California has legalized virtual currencies. The new law states that the “current law which bans the issuance or circulation of anything but lawful money of the United States does not prohibit the issuance and use of alternative currency.” The law also explicitly mentions digital currencies such as Bitcoin, Litecoin and Dogecoin.
- The assistant governor of Australia’s central bank suggested that an independent Scotland could be a testbed for cryptocurrencies. Scotland will hold a referendum concerning its independence in September, which could leave them without a currency if the Scottish choose to become an independent country. Cryptocurrencies could possibly fill the void.
- Both Litecoin and Dogecoin have lost about 23 percent of their market value over the past week. Scrypt coins have been taking heavy hits in recent weeks, as the arrival of a new generation of Scrypt ASIC miners sparks uncertainty regarding the future states of their networks.
