May 18, 2013 at 11:48EFF resumes accepting Bitcoin donations - thanks to the US government
On Friday, May 17, the Electronic Frontier Fund resumed accepting donations in the Bitcoin cryptocurrency . About two years ago, EFF accepted bitcoins for several months, but then abandoned this practice due to concerns of a legal nature. EFF often has to protect people who have problems with the law due to the use of modern technologies, and accepting payments in a currency that is not regulated by anyone can officially create even more problems and jeopardize the main activities of the fund.
However, thanks to recent FinCEN initiatives- A unit of the US Treasury Department that deals with the fight against money laundering, terrorist financing and other financial crimes, Bitcoin's legal status has acquired at least some certainty. Despite the fact that many government attempts to push the cryptocurrency into the legal framework are perceived negatively, they can stimulate the wider distribution of Bitcoin, as many people and organizations treat it with caution or neglect precisely because of the lack of official recognition.
An EFF official said that after the publication of the FinCEN directive, the lawyers of the Fund came to the conclusion that using cryptocurrency is now quite safe. Bitcoin is important for the Fund primarily because the financial blockade, with the help of fully state-controlled financial institutions, is increasingly becoming an instrument of censorship and prosecution of dissidents. Of course, there is a danger that Bitcoin will eventually be regulated so that it loses all its advantages, but so far the cryptocurrency is really much freer than the vast majority of existing payment systems.
EFF representatives also intend to attend the Bitcoin 2013 conference , which is taking place this weekend in San Jose.
However, thanks to recent FinCEN initiatives- A unit of the US Treasury Department that deals with the fight against money laundering, terrorist financing and other financial crimes, Bitcoin's legal status has acquired at least some certainty. Despite the fact that many government attempts to push the cryptocurrency into the legal framework are perceived negatively, they can stimulate the wider distribution of Bitcoin, as many people and organizations treat it with caution or neglect precisely because of the lack of official recognition.
An EFF official said that after the publication of the FinCEN directive, the lawyers of the Fund came to the conclusion that using cryptocurrency is now quite safe. Bitcoin is important for the Fund primarily because the financial blockade, with the help of fully state-controlled financial institutions, is increasingly becoming an instrument of censorship and prosecution of dissidents. Of course, there is a danger that Bitcoin will eventually be regulated so that it loses all its advantages, but so far the cryptocurrency is really much freer than the vast majority of existing payment systems.
EFF representatives also intend to attend the Bitcoin 2013 conference , which is taking place this weekend in San Jose.