BITCOIN CONSIDERED AS MONEY UNDER NEW D.C. RULING

Bitcoin, originally created by the anonymous Satoshi Nakamoto back in 2009, is a form of “money” covered under the Washington District of Columbia (D.C.) Money Transmitters Act. This is the result of a federal court ruling which happened last Friday July 24^th.

The ruling establishes parameters on how the District of Columbia regulates cryptocurrency in money transmission. It also brings the D.C. rule in line with how federal and state authorities treat Bitcoin on the matter of money laundering.

The court declined to dismiss criminal charges against Larry Dean Harmon for running an unlicensed money transmitting business under D.C. law and for laundering money under federal law.

Money “commonly means a medium of exchange, method of payment, or store of value,” Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell wrote for the federal court and therefore stated that “Bitcoin is these things.”

This new ruling will not impact how Bitcoin is recognized by the market but pushes forward the need for an international standard on what Bitcoin is.

source: Bloomberg Law

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