--- begin forwarded text Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 12:44:36 -0500 To: Philodox Clips List <clips@philodox.com> From: "R. A. Hettinga" <rah@shipwright.com> Subject: Payments News: E-Gold Under Scrutiny <http://www.paymentsnews.com/2005/12/egold_under_scr.html#more> Payments News Tracking the world of payments...from Glenbrook Partners December 31, 2005 E-Gold Under Scrutiny January 9th edition of Business Week contains a lengthy investigative report by Brian Grow on online money transfer systems like e-gold Ltd. The article focuses on the potential use of the e-gold payment service by those wanting to move money while skirting the reporting obligations associated with US money laundering regulations. Technorati Tags: E-gold, Money Transfer E-gold is a "digital currency." Opening an account at www.e-gold.com takes only a few clicks of a mouse. Customers can use a false name if they like because no one checks. With a credit card or wire transfer, a user buys units of e-gold. Those units can then be transferred with a few more clicks to anyone else with an e-gold account. For the recipient, cashing out -- changing e-gold back to regular money -- is just as convenient and often just as anonymous. In an online extra, Business Week also looks at Russian-based WebMoney and its customers as well as at Dr. Douglas Jackson, the founder of e-gold. Posted by Scott Loftesness on December 31, 2005 at 06:34 PM in ECommerce, Financial Regulators, Money Transfer | Permalink -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire' --- end forwarded text -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'
At 09:47 AM 1/3/2006, R. A. Hettinga wrote:
<http://www.paymentsnews.com/2005/12/egold_under_scr.html#more>
Payments News
December 31, 2005
E-Gold Under Scrutiny
January 9th edition of Business Week contains a lengthy investigative report by Brian Grow on online money transfer systems like e-gold Ltd. The article focuses on the potential use of the e-gold payment service by those wanting to move money while skirting the reporting obligations associated with US money laundering regulations.
There has been quite a bit of on-line discussion about this article and, except for a notable competitor to E-Gold, the consensus among DGC users is that this article appears to be yet another hatchet-job perhaps encouraged by regulators or law enforcement to smear on-line payment services not sucking up to authorities. For example, while its true that E-Gold does not do much KYC checks that's not its legal responsibility nor in concert with its ToS, which they appear to follow. Almost all KYC responsibility for E-Gold falls on its exchange agents. The IMF estimates that the "shadow economy" runs from 14-16% of the GDP in OECD countries up to 44% in the Developing countries and you can bet very little of this is passing through these 'rebel' on-line payment services. Also, its quite simple to use Western Union and other popular services with little or no ID for smaller payments (although the details of even smaller transactions are probably forwarded to LEOs for scrutiny). Steve
At 10:59 AM -0800 1/3/06, Steve Schear wrote:
yet another hatchet-job
Yup. You can go through the article(s) and literally tick-mark the horsemen as they ride by... Cheers, RAH -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'
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R. A. Hettinga -
Steve Schear