Arrest of Mt. Gox CEO reopens an old wound for bitcoin

Not surprisingly, following the arrest of Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpeles comes word that the Japanese government may seek to implement a formal licensure process for bitcoin exchanges. This was to be expected and has otherwise been greeted by the bitcoin industry with a collective shrug. However, what has not gone unnoticed is the renewed barrage of media editorials calling for “transparency and safety” from this “highly anonymous transaction systems”. Sadly, such calls for regulation are dominated by uninformed rhetoric seeking protection from risks that are not largely understood outside the bitcoin ecosystem. Simply put, the public is asking for “regulation” for the sake of regulation. This is truly concerning to say the least.