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by joezydeco 5292 days ago
Not sure why you're getting downvoted for this, especially since this is the main idea of the article.

So what's to keep a loose network of independent merchants from popping up around the globe to undercut Western Union?
2 comments
wmf 5291 days ago
That already exists: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawala I'm a little surprised the article didn't mention this.
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nas 5291 days ago
Yes but Hawala requires that the agents trust each other. A Hawala-like network could be built by agents who do not trust each other. Users of the network would not have to deal with Bitcoin at all.

I don't know if such a system will come into being but it seems like most of the pieces are already in place. The biggest problem would be converting local currencies into and out of Bitcoin.

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DTanner 5292 days ago
> Not sure why you're getting downvoted for this

There's a portion of internet users who have decided that they really really hate Bitcoin and go out of their way to denigrate it and downvote anyone who doesn't share their views. I can understand the people who are skeptical, because Bitcoin definitely has its problems, but this seething hatred mystifies me...

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joezydeco 5292 days ago
Well, it did get a little crazy this summer with all of the articles and meta-observation about how viable the currency was vs "is HN being used to pump and dump the value".

It still was a fascinating thing to think about from a software point of view, IMO.

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