Bitcoin Group to begin trading on the Australian Securities Exchange in February

By Lulu Chang January 14, 2016

Bitcoin — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Looking for your next great investment opportunity? Believe it or not, it may be with bitcoin. The little cryptocurrency that could has come a long way since its seedy beginnings, and now, an Australian bitcoin company called the Bitcoin Group is on the brink of being listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). The company describes itself as “one of the largest bitcoin mining operators,” and boasts a fleet of over 6,000 machines in seven locations that “mine” for bitcoins. Last Christmas Eve, the Melbourne-headquartered firm became the first cryptocurrency miner to ever undergo an IPO, and offered investors a total of 100 million shares at the price of 20 cents, hoping to raise $20 million.

But now, Bitcoin Group CEO Sam Lee says that his company, and the industry at large, could be worth much more than that — billions rather than millions of dollars, in fact. “Every day more stores are adopting bitcoin as a preferred payment method over systems such as Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal, as merchants don’t need to pay any transaction fees to receive bitcoin,” Bitcoin Group CEO Sam Lee told ZDnet.

Lee also notes that the company was profitable in 2015, a trend that he anticipates Bitcoin Group continuing in years to come.

“Bitcoin will revolutionize the world of finance because it has the potential to make the world of finance more accountable and cheaper to operate,” he told Yahoo Finance, and compared the cryptocurrency to “digital cash,” claiming that this newfangled money has “zero risk to merchants from fraud or charge-backs.”

Shares are currently slated to begin trading on February 2, and Lee calls it “an exciting opportunity for investors who want to be exposed to this technological paradigm shift.” So if you’re looking to diversify your portfolio in rather creative ways, you may consider turning your attention towards the Australian and Bitcoin Group.

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The IRS is cracking down on people who didn’t pay taxes on Bitcoin earnings

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If you've been trading Bitcoin and haven't been reporting your earnings to the IRS, you might be getting a surprise in your mailbox.
The IRS is cracking down on cryptocurrency traders who didn’t report their earnings on their taxes. By the end of next month, around 10,000 people are expected to get letters from the IRS asking them to pay back taxes on unreported earnings from cryptocurrency trading, Engadget reports.
Last year the IRS launched a “Virtual Currency Compliance campaign” to address noncompliance related to the use of virtual currency.
“U.S. persons are subject to tax on worldwide income from all sources including transactions involving virtual currency. IRS Notice 2014-21 states that virtual currency is property for federal tax purposes and provides information on the U.S. federal tax implications of convertible virtual currency transactions,” reads the announcement. “The Virtual Currency Compliance campaign will address noncompliance related to the use of virtual currency through multiple treatment streams including outreach and examinations. The compliance activities will follow the general tax principles applicable to all transactions in property, as outlined in Notice 2014-21. The IRS will continue to consider and solicit taxpayer and practitioner feedback in education efforts, future guidance, and development of Practice Units. Taxpayers with unreported virtual currency transactions are urged to correct their returns as soon as practical. The IRS is not contemplating a voluntary disclosure program specifically to address tax non-compliance involving virtual currency.”
Last week the IRS started sending “educational letters” to some taxpayers. The names of those who are receiving the letter were acquired from “various ongoing compliance efforts” conducted by the IRS.
"Taxpayers should take these letters very seriously by reviewing their tax filings and when appropriate, amend past returns and pay back taxes, interest, and penalties," said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. "The IRS is expanding our efforts involving virtual currency, including increased use of data analytics. We are focused on enforcing the law and helping taxpayers fully understand and meet their obligations.”
Taxpayers that do not accurately report their earnings through cryptocurrency trading are liable for the tax for those earnings as well as penalties and interest. In some cases, the IRS notes that those who have not paid taxes on cryptocurrency earnings could potentially face criminal prosecution.

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Hackers demanding bitcoin payments for code held hostage from GitHub and GitLab

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Hackers are demanding bitcoin payments in exchange for code that they have extracted from GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket repositories, through ransom notes that they have left behind for their victims.

Hackers have removed all the source code from the repositories, and in exchange is a ransom note that demands 0.1 bitcoin, which is equivalent to about $570. The hackers claim to be willing to send proof that they are indeed holding the code hostage, backed up on their own servers.

Emerging Tech

This streaming music service pays artists in Bitcoin, plants trees if you listen

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It sounds like the ultimate tongue-in-cheek sales pitch to target millennials: An environmentally friendly streaming music service that pays artists in Bitcoin, and plants trees in exchange for streams from customers. All you need are references to vaping and craft ale, and you’d have a comprehensive 20-something hipster bingo card.

In fact, it’s a serious new venture by streaming music upstart Feedbands that targets indie musicians. In an attention-grabbing effort to carve out a niche in the shadow of giants like Spotify and Apple Music, it’s come up with a musician-friendly way to generate streaming royalties that are beneficial to artists and listeners alike -- while maybe even helping save the planet in the process.