Toronto Star: Vancouver's Bitcoin ATM ban
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Toronto Star: Vancouver's Bitcoin ATM ban
I write in the Toronto Star about Vancouver’s potential Bitcoin ATM ban.
On May 28, Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart said council would consider banning the machines. His spokesman told me: “The Bitcoin ATM ban came out of information the VPD (Vancouver Police Department) has collected.”
It’s unclear what that information is. The police hasn’t said much publicly beyond a 2018 report that gave little empirical evidence. They had only a prediction that criminals “will be exploring” ATMs as means to launder money.
There is no dispute that criminals probably have used Bitcoin ATMs to launder money, just like how they have used restaurants, casinos, convenience stores or any other business. But are they using Bitcoin ATMs more so than the other methods? It’s hard to say, because compared to the truly untraceable cash, using cryptocurrency for crime is hard.
But even if money laundering is prevalent, a better solution to banning would be to just work with the operators.
The ban is the wrong approach. The punishment is too broad, and its effectiveness questionable. It’s like shooting mosquitoes with a shotgun.
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The white paper proposal for Facebook’s cryptocurrency is currently scheduled for a June 18 release. The stablecoin will be pegged to a basket of traditional currencies. Facebook is in talks to create an independent foundation to oversee its cryptocurrency. It’s asking companies to pay $10 million to operate nodes to facilitate transactions.
Binance, the top crypto exchange by adjusted trading volume, has confirmed it will soon issue its own stablecoins.
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