28 July 2014 / BRW Financial Review “……. Australia is starting to live up the hopes of having its own “Silicon Beach” to go with Silicon Valley in California and Silicon Alley in New York. But are the likes of Tsvetnenko building actual business, or will they be wiped out if – some would say when – the bubble bursts?

His bitcoin business Digital CC, which trades under the name DigitalBTC, was set up just four months ago. It earns bitcoins by using algorithms to authorise transactions from one bitcoin user to another.

Bitcoin is a decentraliased virtual currency championed as a faster, cheaper alternative to existing payment systems. Its origins are shadowy and a good number of its users are likely to be motivated to avoid detection by tax authorities or police – it’s been identified as a preferred way to pay for drugs on illegal websites like Silk Road.

But it’s also slowly creeping into the general financial system. This month computer giant Dell began accepting bitcoin payments, joining travel booking website Expedia.com and US satellite TV company Dish to embrace the currency. Closer to home, Sydney real estate agency Forsyth Real Estate accepts the virtual currency for house deposits and property advertising. Bitcoin ATMs are even popping up in Westfield shopping centres.

In June, Digital CC became the first company dedicated to bitcoins to float on a major stock exchange and it has already recovered its initial $4 million start-up costs”….. Read more

http://www.brw.com.au/p/entrepreneurs/young_rich_lister_zhenya_tsvetnenko_4tNJu7w5JavjCp4Y6rrvJP