London might become Bitcoin hub, Russia bans the cryptocurrency again and Dogecoin enables merged mining with Litecoin. Here are the cryptocurrency highlights of week 32:
- While the U.S. and Japan choose to classify Bitcoin as a property, the U.K. could be moving in the other direction. The Treasury is examining how cryptocurrencies could play a role in the government’s plans to make London “the Financial Technology company of the world.” New York City better watch out, or it could be left behind.
- Even though the creator of Bitcoin remains a mystery, a group named CIA Project claims to have evidence that either the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) or Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is behind the cryptocurrency. It is not the first time that Bitcoin is subject of a conspiracy theory, but for now these will remain theories.
- Hackers have found a new way to steal Bitcoins. In a recent theft, hackers managed to steal entire chunks of raw internet traffic. By redirecting a portion of online internet traffic, it became possible to gain control over a group of Bitcoin miners. At least $83,000 worth of Bitcoins has been stolen. The new exploit mainly represents a vulnerability in internet itself, rather than Bitcoin.
- Russia could be banning Bitcoin again. Earlier this year, the Bank of Russia already notified consumers that the use of Bitcoin was not legal. The latest regulation will likely include the possibility to send those who break it to jail. With all the current financial sanctions being implemented against Russia, Putin could actually use some Bitcoins.
- Dogecoin will enable merged mining (Auxiliary Proof of Work) with Litecoin. For several months, there has been uncertainty surrounding the future of Dogecoin’s mining. Merged mining does not fix any of the problems inherent to Proof of Work mining, but given that Dogecoin mining will mature early 2015 something had to be done to keep the coin’s network secure.
