Via the South China Morning Post (archived) news comes that the latest criminal charge Mark Karpelès faces for his role in the MtGox debacle is that of embezzelment.
Category Archives: Asia
Governor For Reserve Bank Of India Talks Bitcoin: Is Worrisome, Security Issues
Raghuram Rajan, who is the Governor for the Reserve Bank of India, spoke with Indian students in an hour long discussion put together by NDTV and hosted by Dr Prannoy Roy. Fielding questions from the audience, one student asked Rajan for his opinion on Bitcoin to which Rajan stated the security is an issue and that some features of Bitcoin are worrisome. Continue reading
Thai Mining Operation Catches Fire, Estimated 7 Petahashes Lost
A Thai mining operation run by BitcoinTalk user CowboyMiner reportedly lost three data centers to fire. CowboyMiner posted a picture of the aftermath in a forum thread earlier today. Initial estimates of the hashing power lost were tallied at approximately 7 Petahashes. Continue reading
Hong Kong SAR Government Sponsored Bitcoin Exchange Bitspark Goes Live
Hong Kong based exchange, payment processor and remittance startup Bitspark have opened their doors for business, having gone into limited beta as of the 22nd of October. In order to entice new users to the exchange, Bitspark will only charge a fee when users withdraw coins from the exchange. Continue reading
Taiwan: Regulators Approve Listing of Mining Chip Maker
In Taiwan, regulators have approved the listing of semiconductor design house Alchip Technologies on the Taiwan Stock Exchange. Alchip reportedly produces ASIC mining chips for KNC miner and Avalon as well as chips unrelated to Bitcoin mining.
Vietnam: Prosecutors Reject Charging Bitcoin Traders
Thanh Nien News reports that three individuals arrested in Khanh Hoa Province for buying and selling Bitcoins have been released without charges on the order of local prosecutors. Police plan to continue pursuing the case by appealing to the Supreme People’s Procuracy to continue the prosecution. In the course of the arrest nearly 500 million Vietnamese Dong were seized along with computers and documents. According to the deputy head of the local prosecution unit "the three did not engage in an illegal transaction since Bitcoins are not a recognized currency or commodity in Vietnam and therefore cannot be considered a banned item."
RockMiner R4 Devices Seized at Customs, One Person Detained
Four Rockminer R4 Bitcoin miners were seized by the Customs Service in Chita, Russia along with the Russian Citizen transporting them according to a report by Coinside.ru's Maxim Primakov. According to the report this action may be supposed to be the beginning of a practical campaign against Bitcoin by the Russian Government following longstanding rhetorical opposition to Bitcoin by elements of the Russian Government.
Coinside's report offers hope that Customs officials along the European border may be less capable or inclined to seize Bitcoin mining devices, but cautions their readers about having mining devices delivered by Russian Post as the time taken to receive a Bitcoin miner is a critical factor that affects its possibility to mine profitably.