Look what they say! ZOMG
https://mtgox.com/press_release_20130412.htmlThere is no doubt that we are expecting a violent crash of Bitcoin after trading resumes, but we are confident that this Panic Sell will be temporarily and that Bitcoin will rise again.
This claim can be recognized as promising of further high returns.
http://www.sec.gov/answers/ponzi.htmA Ponzi scheme is an investment fraud that involves the payment of purported returns to existing investors from funds contributed by new investors. Ponzi scheme organizers often solicit new investors by promising to invest funds in opportunities claimed to generate high returns with little or no risk. In many Ponzi schemes, the fraudsters focus on attracting new money to make promised payments to earlier-stage investors and to use for personal expenses, instead of engaging in any legitimate investment activity.
Bitcoin missed only one sign of financial pyramid: promises of high returns. And here is it! Congrats gox, well done.
April 3rd Mt Gox statement -- 'I understand that many of you have a lot at stake here, but remember that Bitcoin,
despite being designed to have its value increase over time, will always be the victim of people trying to abuse the system, or
even the value of Bitcoin decreasing occasionally. These are not new phenomena and have been present since the beginning of time when humans first started trading'.
Can you imagine a brokerage in the US being able to say that the underlying is 'designed to increase in value' or that it's value 'decreases occasionally'? They couldn't because it would be illegal.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=172944.msg1805765#msg1805765