We accept Bitcoins! This is a banner that more and more online vendors are beginning to utilize. If you have not heard about them yet, you soon will. Bitcoins are a form of digital currency that if used correctly could save you money in transaction costs, increase the security of your transactions for peace of mind and also mitigate the loss of your purchasing power due to inflation.

You may be asking yourself “How can Bitcoins accomplish this for me?” Bitcoins are able to offer these benefits by virtue of how it was created and the intent behind it creation. Bitcoins first surfaced on the web in 2009, a computer program created by a programmer going by the username of Satoshi Nakamoto. His invention was an open source, peer to peer digital currency. Since it was created by this single programmer, there is no controlling entity such as the Federal Reserve or any need for third party intermediary such as Visa or PayPal. The Bitcoin system is completely decentralized. This allows Bitcoin users to bypass any transaction fees that banks may charge hence the savings in transaction costs mentioned before. Bitcoins are not completely anonymous however, each user is given a unique online identity and that is then encrypted so that no personal information is passed along between buyer and seller in the peer to peer transactions. Every transaction is recorded into a public ledger. This allows any and all transactions to be viewed by computers on the network but does not reveal any personal information about the involved parties. Lastly, because Bitcoins are decentralized and programmed to increase the number of Bitcoins according to the amount of activity by users, there is no erosion of a Bitcoin user’s purchasing power due to inflation.

Governments (or their central bank) often regulate the supply of money and credit. There often tends to have some degree of mismanagement of this government function which leads to a high inflation problem. Bitcoins do not share this mismanagement issues because it is completely controlled by the Bitcoin program itself and the amount of Bitcoins in circulation are capped to mitigate inflation. While this may sound like a dream come true it does have its downfalls, being a completely decentralized and digital currency with no physical form can be intimidating to most individuals. Bitcoins are currently completely legal in the United States, however, there have been movements by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System that as of yet have produced no laws but have initiatives in place by which they are scrutinizing and watching the rise of digital currency. This is an effort by them to properly assess the threats and promises made by Bitcoins and other digital currencies like them. Bitcoins can be a very lucrative and promising forage into the digital world of currency, however, in its current state I would recommend waiting until more security can be added to the peer to peer system. Not Many security breaches have been recorded in its past six years of operations, but the ones that have are reported to have been catastrophic in magnitude. One example is Mt. Gox a Bitcoin savings and trust company, the reported breach and stolen Bitcoins equaled about 400 million in US dollars and subsequently forced Mt. Gox to file bankruptcy. Bitcoins can be a great tool in the future but as of right now it is still in an infant form. One day, all transactions may be made securely by way of Bitcoins or another digital currency but that day is not today.


 

jeff krigel tulsa criminal defense lawyerThe Jeff Krigel Law Firm, PLLC is a full-service Oklahoma law firm dedicated to achieving your legal goals in a competent, trusting, and result oriented manner. The firm is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and handles criminal defense, family law, Tulsa DUI Defense, as well as other legal matters in all Oklahoma Counties. If you have been accused of a crime or injured in an accident, it is important to seek the help of a qualified attorney. Whether you are seeking help from a Tulsa Personal Injury Attorney, or have another legal matter, we offer free consultations and have payment plans available. There is no reason not speak with someone regarding your case. Give us a call today for an honest legal opinion regarding your criminal or civil law matter. If you have been injured in an accident, we handle cases on a contingency fee basis: if we don’t recover money for you, we do not receive an attorney’s fee.