Quote from: brg444 on April 30, 2015, 03:31:07 AM

Quote from: cypherdoc on April 30, 2015, 03:24:03 AM

Quote from: brg444 on April 30, 2015, 03:14:44 AM

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Today we announced a major step forward in the execution of our vision and product strategy. We've closed a new $50 million strategic investment round co-led by Goldman Sachs and IDG Capital Partners.

And for the first time, we're giving Circle customers the ability to hold, send, and receive US dollars as well as bitcoin -- instantly, securely, and with no fees. In addition to sending and receiving dollars, customers can also enjoy the benefits of the Bitcoin network without the risk of price volatility.

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Dollar account balances held by Circle customers are FDIC-insured.

http://blog.circle.com/2015/04/30/new-circle-investors-new-us-dollar-account-features-china-horizons/

Interesting moves from Circle.

Goldman Sachs investment sure to raise some eyebrows

are you noticing a theme here? don't bother to really credit Bitcoin as the plumbing underneath enabling the intl transfer of dollar balances:

Circles robust support for Bitcoin also gets even better. If customers choose to hold dollars instead of bitcoin balances, they can still pay any person or merchant who accepts payment in bitcoin, without ever holding bitcoin themselves. Circle will handle instant conversion from dollars into bitcoin at the time of the payment. The reverse is also true: customers can accept bitcoin and expect Circle to convert it instantly into dollars in their Circle accounts. This gives customers the benefits of bitcoin payments without the risk of price volatility.

This way, customers can choose to view Bitcoin not as a new currency to replace the dollar, but as an Internet payment network that enables secure, instant, global and nearly free payments.

The only theme I'm noticing is you letting these absolutely inoffensive distractions bother you.

I wouldn't say it is offensive, but it does make Circle's contribution to the popularization of Bitcoin relatively marginal at best. Maybe that was always going to be the case, whether they offered auto-converting dollar-denominated accounts or not though.

Look elsewhere for developments that may actually help Bitcoin in a meaningful way, for example: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/03/magazine/how-bitcoin-is-disrupting-argentinas-economy.html?smid=tw-share

"With its volatile currency and dysfunctional banks, the country is the perfect place to experiment with a new digital currency" -- As I said ~~several pages back on this thread~~ recently on another thread (quote below), trying to compete with a reasonably well-functioning (at least in the short term) financial system in developed western countries is not going to work (again, in the short term).

Quote from: smooth on April 27, 2015, 11:15:03 AM

Bitcoin has to find markets to serve that aren't well served by e.g. credit cards. I don't know what those are. Maybe the unbanked. Maybe the third world. Maybe it's people seeking refuge from an unstable fiat monetary and banking system. Maybe it's libertarians with a political agenda. Maybe its none of those. The one thing I know is that it isn't Sally Sixpack in the West using it instead of a credit card for no good reason at all.