West Virginia Democrat Senator Calls For A Ban On All Cryptocurrency
The wild and wonderful state of West Virginia isn't so wild about Bitcoin, Litecoin, and every other type of virtual currency that's hotter than a southern summer day. More specifically, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin (Democrat) takes issue with crytpocurrencies and asked the U.S. to ban Bitcoin and any other virtual currency like it.
Manchin made his disdain known for Bitcoin and other currencies like it in an open letter to U.S. regulators. In the letter, he points out that virtual currency is unregulated and has already allowed users to engage in illicit activity.
"The very features that make Bitcoin attractive to some also attract criminals who are able to disguise their actions from law enforcement. Due to Bitcoin’s anonymity, the virtual market has been extremely susceptible to hackers and scam artists stealing millions from Bitcoins users," Manchin points out. "Anonymity combined with Bitcoin’s ability to finalize transactions quickly, makes it very difficult, if not impossible, to reverse fraudulent transactions."
Manchin's list of complaints is rather long. He goes on to note that Bitcoins are used to buy black market items like drugs and illegal weapons, and points out that wild price fluctuations are detrimental to the U.S. economy.
Whether on purpose or coincidence, Manchin's letter comes hot on the heels of the popular exchange site Mt. Gox shutting down amid allegations that it had lost millions of dollars worth of currency to hackers.
Manchin made his disdain known for Bitcoin and other currencies like it in an open letter to U.S. regulators. In the letter, he points out that virtual currency is unregulated and has already allowed users to engage in illicit activity.
"The very features that make Bitcoin attractive to some also attract criminals who are able to disguise their actions from law enforcement. Due to Bitcoin’s anonymity, the virtual market has been extremely susceptible to hackers and scam artists stealing millions from Bitcoins users," Manchin points out. "Anonymity combined with Bitcoin’s ability to finalize transactions quickly, makes it very difficult, if not impossible, to reverse fraudulent transactions."
Manchin's list of complaints is rather long. He goes on to note that Bitcoins are used to buy black market items like drugs and illegal weapons, and points out that wild price fluctuations are detrimental to the U.S. economy.
Whether on purpose or coincidence, Manchin's letter comes hot on the heels of the popular exchange site Mt. Gox shutting down amid allegations that it had lost millions of dollars worth of currency to hackers.
