Litecoin wallet move
The following article was posted on May 28th, 2014, in the Santa Maria Sun – Volume 15, Issue 12
The following articles were printed from Santa Maria Sun [santamariasun.com] – Volume 15, Issue 12
BY JOE PAYNE
Every day, all over the world, people engage in transactions, large and small. Whether they’re buying a sandwich or a house, most of these transactions involve money. Essentially a bartering tool, money allows populations to easily engage in exchanges of goods and services with official and recognizable paper or coins.
Business conducted across countries’ borders has long necessitated an international banking system, means of exchange, and international taxation—until now. With the advent of such crypto currencies as Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Peercoin, transactions are happening across cyberspace in the blink of an eye, and banks aren’t involved.
“We’re in a paradigm shift right now, a lot of people don’t realize that, ” said Benjamin Vigil, owner of Apple Tree Dress, a clothing store in Santa Maria’s Town Center East. “We went from the industrial age to the information age; it actually happened about 15 years ago. That’s when it started.”
Vigil has just begun accepting Bitcoin at his clothing store. Of all the crypto currencies in the market today, Bitcoin is the most popular, being the first crypto currency, invented in 2009. Accepting a currency other than dollars wasn’t a huge leap for Vigil, who also owns a trading company and will often buy gold or silver coins from customers, who in turn use their new U.S. currency to purchase clothing from Apple Tree.
“Going to a crypto currency was a very easy transition for us because there is obviously a value to it; you can check it every day, ” Vigil said. “It’s actually much easier to translate than someone bringing in a diamond ring, where I have to bring someone in and assess what the value is, and hopefully I don’t get burned.”
Bitcoin has drawn the attention of only a few businesses on the Central Coast. Though the digital currency was invented to easily move money in e-commerce, locals in the service industry have also started accepting the new form of money. Le Ciel Crepe Café in San Luis Obispo has been accepting Bitcoin for several months now, allowing it for transactions as small as a single crepe and coffee’s worth.
“It seemed like an interesting thing to do, ” said Le Ciel owner Barry Fenton. “It seemed like no one else around was doing it, so we thought it would be fun for the people in town who use Bitcoin to start accepting it.”
