By Rebecca Robbins July 30 at 1:57 PM <\/p>\n
Many technophilesand libertarians already love Bitcoin. If three bitcoin-friendly congressmen have their way, federal lawmakers could, too. <\/p>\n
Bitcoin industry representatives descended on Capitol Hill on July 29 to trumpet the cryptocurrency to any staffers who would listen. <\/p>\n
Not many, though, were listening. Although a morning briefing on the issue drew several dozen Hill staffers, attendance was sparse at an educational evening tabling event. <\/p>\n
Conversation at the evening event buzzed for a few minutes when the three congressmen hosting Bitcoin Demo Day stopped by to shake hands and pick up fliers. But for much of the event, bitcoin start-up vendors and entrepreneurs outnumbered their intended audience: curious Hill staffers. As the event wounddown in its final half-hour, many of the vendors free slap-on bracelets, stickersandkeychains were left untaken. <\/p>\n
Still, low turnoutdidnt quell the upbeat sentiment of the day. While the events were billed as strictly educational, their agenda was clear: to encourage legislators to continue their laissez-faire approach to regulating the virtual currency. <\/p>\n
Its a good thing we haven't seen Washington standing in the way of digital currencies, and we need to raise the awareness level here so that we dont pass any well-intended laws that impede the tremendous benefits that [the currencies can bring], Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) said in an interview at the evening tabling event. <\/p>\n
It was a scene that would have been difficult to imagine just five months ago, when the Tokyo-based Mt. Gox, once the worlds largest bitcoin exchange, filed for bankruptcy and said hackers had stolen bitcoins valued at $460 million, leaving users with little recourse. That disaster came on the heels of several arrests of high-profile members of the Bitcoin community on money-laundering charges. <\/p>\n
The scandals prompted calls for greater regulation of and even a ban on a decentralized virtual currency designed to keep the governments hands out of financial transactions. The Bitcoin network allows users to make transactions using pseudonyms, allowing for anonymity not possible with traditionalcashlessexchanges. <\/p>\n
But the resulting regulation was minimal. The Internal Revenue Service said in March that it regards bitcoins as a form of taxable property, not a government-backed currency, a ruling that was greeted with mixed reactions from the currencys backers. Congress continued a series of optimistic hearings on Bitcoin, and in May, the Federal Election Commission okayed the donation of bitcoins to political committees. <\/p>\n
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