Vuscan’s exchange works only for Romanian leu deals, but he plans to open it to euro and dollar transactions, hoping to join larger European bitcoin exchanges such as Slovenia’s Bitstamp.
BTCXchange is registered as a standard company. Vuscan enforced some safeguards – users are required to have a bank account and there are self-imposed policies against money laundering. But there are no legal or regulatory safeguards.
Bitcoin’s rise in Romania is partially due to its status as one of Europe’s active technology hubs. The country has attracted investors including Oracle, IBM and Intel.
But while Romania boasts pockets of super-fast internet networks, only 58 percent of households have internet access, below the EU average. A 2012 Verizon report also said Romania was the world’s second-biggest hacking center after China.
Vuscan says his exchange is safe and he will reimburse clients if their bitcoins get stolen. “I can hardly wait for them to try,” he said when asked about hacker attacks. (Reuters)[eap_ad_3]