4196

Longtime crypto whales/promoters the Winklevoss’ getting bit:

[Bloomberg article]([Bloomberg - Are you a robot?]

4197

Bitcoin is down a bit today, but I wonder if it would be falling faster if anybody could withdraw any of their bitcoin from any of the exchanges to sell it? Can’t have a bank run if all the banks are closed!!

4198

I think Genesis is the new one to halt withdrawals.

4199

I don’t follow crypto enough to know why an exchange would have to halt withdrawals. Are they guaranteeing conversion rates to e.g. USD? Are they using their customers’ deposits for loans / speculation, so they don’t actually have them on hand?

I mean, if you’re holding ETH in a wallet on Genesis, and ETH goes to ~0, why can’t you withdraw your ETH?

4200

That, or just stolen outright, if history is anything to go by.

4201

Sure, but I was wondering what the non-incriminating justification was supposed to be. “We’re not crooks but we can’t give you your money right now because ________?”

4202

Vague, hand-wavey technical issues seems to be the go-to excuse.

4203

A lot of these exchanges (maybe all?) are trying to operate like banks. Customer assets on deposit are re-loaned out in the background. Some reserved are kept on hand, but if people panic and start a bank run then the whole house of cards falls apart when reserved are inadequate to meet withdrawal requests.

4204

I wonder how many of the people still in it are still way up on their initial investment. Also, does anyone have any idea how what percentage of Bitcoin were mined compared to bought?

4205

And since there’s no regulation, these “banks” may carry zero reserves. Nobody knows.

4206

That’s a really excellent point. I should have said unregulated banks instead of banks. One need not be a deep student of history to know how unregulated banks have failed society in the past.

4207

A lot of them are literal Ponzi schemes that lure people in with the promise of ludicrous returns, which are paid out of customer deposits.

4208

Not exactly sure what you’re asking. All bitcoin is mined initially. That’s the only way bitcoin can be created.

4209

Timely.

4210

I think the question is, what percentage of Bitcoin is still in the hands of the original miner?

4211

But mining earns you Bitcoin, Bitcoin you aren’t paying for at market prices.

I just watched a PBS Nova documentary on this. Man, what a convoluted mess it is. Even after an hour I wasn’t sure what was going on.

4212

Oh, I bet almost none of it. Miners need to pay for electricity, and I don’t think there are any electricity providers who take bitcoin.

4213

Etherium is claiming they will be changing the means of mining “soon” to a almost power free method. Supposedly 99.95% less electricity required due to a change in the way miners are selected.

4214

Didn’t they already do that?

4215

In our new model, would-be miners create Amberium by walking the pattern engraved on the stone floor of the deepest chamber beneath the palace.