In these times everyone talks about Bitcoins, but there are a number of aspects about their security, their taxation and their way of operating that not everyone knows. . Here is a list of ten things that nobody said about Bitcoin.
1.- It could be the tip of a dangerous iceberg. Many of the forms of payment used involve banks and national monetary systems. Virtual currencies, such as Bitcoin, offer decentralized payment networks that allow you to act without intermediaries. This does not have to be positive, since the recent history of bitcoin offers plenty of reasons for consumers to be cautious.
2.- It can become a fiscal nightmare. The US Treasury, the IRS, states that, for tax purposes, bitcoins must be like investments, stocks and bonds, and not like a traditional currency.
3.- They have more publicity than market share. There are more than 400 virtual currencies and among all add up to less than the Burger King chain (8,700 against 9,300 million dollars), so the amount of Bitcoins in circulation is not really as big as it seems.
4.- Its volatility can ruin you. Its value is very sensitive to how people perceive them, so it can fluctuate wildly.
5.- They are a fertile ground for fraud. The State of New York proposed a series of rules and licenses to operate with Bitcoins. A requirement that prevents money laundering and guarantees the security of transfers in this virtual currency is also required. But, for now, the terrain of the virtual lines is unregulated.
6.- Your small software problems can cost a lot of money. The Mt. Gox platform went bankrupt in February after a hacker attack. The cause, a software flaw that left him losing 850,000 bitcoins.
7.- Those who have bitcoins may have to print their 'digital' money. Digital money, like digital information, is vulnerable to hackers. Ironically, one way to protect it is to keep it offline.
8.- Your commissions are low, but maybe not for a long time. As the costs of strengthening the Bitcoin against attacks and the costs of operating the currency increase, so will the costs of transactions.
9.- The 'miners' of coins can undermine your bank account. The cases of hackers that enter the accounts where users save their Bitcoins and take advantage to make purchases online at sites like Amazon are not uncommon.
10.- You could need them someday, like it or not. They are increasingly accepted in more places: Dell, Wordpress or airBaltic are among the brands that accept them, but also private businesses scattered around the world. The fact is that this cheap system is gaining followers.
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