It begins: US government issues $700,000 fine against a digital currency

Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later.
Our beloved amigos at the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), have just issued the first-ever ‘civil enforcement action’ against a virtual currency.
The offending criminal mastermind in this case? Ripple Labs.
If you’re not familiar, Ripple is a virtual currency platform that was once the darling of Silicon Valley, attracting top VC firms like Google Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz.
Ripple’s technology allows users to conduct financial transactions with one another – sending and receiving payments in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, as well as fiat currency.
Imagine Bitcoin meets Paypal… and you have the basic idea.
As part of its technology, the parent company Ripple Labs also created a native virtual currency called ‘XRP’, which is the second largest in the world after Bitcoin when measured by market capitalization.
Because of all of these features, Ripple Labs qualifies as a ‘money service business (MSB)’ according to FinCEN… which makes them subject to all sorts of regulations.

This post was published at Sovereign Man on May 5, 2015.