COINBASE INC. TO OPEN THE FIRST LICENSED BITCOIN EXCHANGE IN THE U.S.

Coinbase Inc., backed by $106 million from the New York Stock Exchange, banks, and venture capital firms, will open the first licensed exchange for bitcoin, according to The Wall Street Journal. The exchange could provide greater security for individuals and institutions to trade bitcoin and monitor real-time pricing of the cryptocurrency.
The exchange could also bring needed legitimacy to the currency, the article noted. Coinbase said it had insurance, offering traders some assurance that their money won’t disappear.
Bitcoin has suffered the collapse of Japan-based exchange Mt. Gox last year, the article noted. Bitcoin also suffered a security breach earlier this month at Slovenia-based exchange Bitstamp. The value of a bitcoin itself, determined by trading on existing exchanges, has fallen to about $240 from a peak in late 2013 of above $1,200, The Wall Street Journal reported (it’s now back above $300!).

This post was published at Crypto Coins News on January 26, 2015.