02.17.14
Bitcoin palpitation
This morning, Bitcoin could be purchased in Los Angeles, as USC, for $317, the average price on Mt. Gox.
The same seller is now advertising 268 with the caveat, “Price is Mt. Gox market price at time of transaction.”
Mt. Gox, as of right at post publication, is offering an average $320, a low of $248, and a high of $411.
Linking is pointless as the exchange rate is so changeable.
Bitcoincharts dot com offers a spread of pricing, from $629 at BitStamp in the US to a low of 207 from Mt. Gox (in Euros), 278 in dollars.
But why would you buy any BitCoin that offered at an online exchange for higher values? Isn’t the purpose of the network to grease the best, most frictionless, most advantageous deal? It is, by design, an every-man-for-himself currency.
There is no advantage in buying a Bitcoin at any of the elevated rates, either from local traders or on-line exchanges. If there is a wide spread in valuation, this money is only as valuable at the lowest price, presumably sold where the most volume is conducted.
One of the ways to restore the value, then, is by price fixing. The Bitcoin sellers all look at the charts and unilaterally agree to not sell at anything below the highest number. Ha-ha.
Thought exercise: How much have the Winklevoss twins lost on their Bitcoin holdings over the weekend?
Yes, I’ll try anything once. This blog now accepts BitCoin charity.