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by J.M.P. — The Economist

A GROUP of self-described anarchists, libertarians and Ron Paul supporters fleeing the crumbling world economic system have founded Galt’s Gulch, a community in Chile inspired by Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged”—and with an economy based entirely on Bitcoin. Or that’s the goal, anyway.

“Our farm workers and suppliers still want to get paid in pesos,” Ken Johnson, the project’s founder and managing partner, explains. “But Bitcoin as the John Galt coin? Why shouldn’t it be?”

If the world economic system “goes sideways,” as Mr Johnson puts it, residents will retreat to their self-sufficient gated community, where they will enjoy a shooting range, equestrian facilities, and spa and fitness center. The 6,874-hectare site (pictured) also includes a 100-hectare farm, although it is not clear who will pick the lettuce when the world ends.

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By Indu Nandakumar, ET Bureau
BANGALORE: Tarun Thadani, the proprietor of a vintage-themed pizza outlet in the posh Worli area of MumbaiWhile bitcoin gains in popularity in India, entrepreneurs and investors say they are concerned about the RBI’s stance on the digital currency. (AFP), thinks he is making history. On Saturday, his restaurant Kolonial announced that its patrons can pay in bitcoins instead of rupees, thus laying claim to the title of being India’s first eatery to accept the new-age currency. “Right now, people are a bit sceptical about bitcoins, but it’s going to become big. I am testing the waters,” said Thadani, 30, who is a bitcoin owner and a host to several bitcoin meetups at Kolonial.
The only other business establishment in India which accepts bitcoins is Mumbai’s Castle Blue spa and salon. In Bangalore, the technology startup accelerator Microsoft Ventures Accelerator is doing its bit for bitcoin by lending its office space to host the country’s first Bitcoin meetup of 2014 in India’s tech capital.

BANGALORE: Tarun Thadani, the proprietor of a vintage-themed pizza outlet in the posh Worli area of Mumbai, thinks he is making history. On Saturday, his restaurant Kolonial announced that its patrons can pay in bitcoins instead of rupees, thus laying claim to the title of being India’s first eatery to accept the new-age currency. “Right now, people are a bit sceptical about bitcoins, but it’s going to become big. I am testing the waters,” said Thadani, 30, who is a bitcoin owner and a host to ..

BANGALORE: Tarun Thadani, the proprietor of a vintage-themed pizza outlet in the posh Worli area of Mumbai, thinks he is making history. On Saturday, his restaurant Kolonial announced that its patrons can pay in bitcoins instead of rupees, thus laying claim to the title of being India’s first eatery to accept the new-age currency. “Right now, people are a bit sceptical about bitcoins, but it’s going to become big. I am testing the waters,” said Thadani, 30, who is a bitcoin owner and a host to ..

By Lance Dixon [email protected]

The U.S. Senate has deemed it legitimate. Detractors dismiss it as unstable and a vehicle for criminal trade. China has  A twenty-five bitcoin token. The digital currency, which carries the unofficial ticker symbol of BTC, was unveiled in 2009 by an unidentified programmer, or group of programmers, under the name of Satoshi Nakamoto. Supply is capped at 21 million Bitcoins and managed by a software algorithm embedded into the digital currency’s design, rather than a monetary authority such as a central bank. banned new deposits on its largest exchange.

Bitcoin, the international digital payment system and currency and one of the hottest technology and finance topics this past year, could become a widespread vehicle for trade, believe the leaders of a Miami group. To further that view, Miami International Bitcoin will be partcipating in the North American Bitcoin Conference slated for Miami Beach in January.

“The thing that’s really exciting about Bitcoin is that, here in South Florida, we have a half billion people to the south of us who do not have access to a banking system that works well, capital markets, credit — things that we take for granted,” said Charles Evans, business professor at Florida Atlantic University and one of the founders of Miami International Bitcoin.

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for Tech in Asia

Bitcoin

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the country’s central bank, has decided not to intervene on whether businesses can accept Bitcoin as a means of transacting goods and services.

“Whether or not businesses accept bitcoins in exchange for their goods and services is a commercial decision in which MAS does not intervene,” it told Singapore-based Bitcoin trading platform Coin Republic in an email.

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By — The Washington Post

In May, brothers Guiseppe and Mario Lanzone started a Peruvian food business in Washington, hoping to cash in on the District’s enchantment with food trucks.

Today, the two are betting on another trend: a virtual currency called Bitcoin. The Lanzones decided a few weeks ago they would be accepting Bitcoin, announcing the change in a tweet to their 800 followers.

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When Newport Beach City Council candidate Michael Glenn thinks of freedom, that includes the freedom to choose how to donate — be it with dollar, peso or bitcoin.

Glenn claims to be the first local politician to accept campaign donations in the esoteric digital currency. He is running against businesswoman Diane Dixon and Harbor Commissioner Joe Stapleton for the Balboa Peninsula’s 1st District council seat.

Glenn’s announcement comes just weeks after customers used bitcoins to pay for a Tesla, and then a Lamborghini, from a Costa Mesa dealership.

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Online retail outlet Overstock.com will start accepting Bitcoins as early as the end of Q2 2014, according to CEO Patrick Byrne.

They will be the first major online retailer to do so. The news was first reported on newsBTC.

Byrne told us by phone this afternoon that he considers himself a believer in the Austrian economics school, which says fiat currency, like the U.S. dollar, is fundamentally flawed since it is prone to inflation and manipulation. Bitcoin, like gold, is immune to this, since there is a fixed supply.

Philosophically, we support Bitcion,” he said.

by

While the rest of us are messing around with our PayPals and Amazon Payments, some folks in Argentina have created the first crowdfunding platform in America to take Bitcoin.

The platform, called Idea.me focuses primarily on artistic, musical, and retail projects although, as evidenced by the project photos, many campaigns have a philanthropic bent. The platform was “born in Argentina” wrote Pia Giudice and is now in seven countries in Latin America. It is the area’s only regional crowdfunding platform. The platform has seen $750,000 in funding and should be raising $2.4 million in March 2014 in a Series A.

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