为什么比特币在中国这么红

为什么比特币在中国这么红 这个问世刚四年的虚拟货币一度被视为浅薄的时髦小玩意儿，只有不法分子和贩 毒人员才用。但最近几周，它却获得了来自各方的全新信任，而它在中国的表现 尤其抢眼。不过，它本质上还是一个全球范围内的货币试验，它的未来依然存在 不确定性。 Bitcoin has reached a rite of passage. The 比特币终于迎来了走向成熟的盛大仪式。这 four-year-old virtual currency was once 个年方四岁的虚拟货币一度被视为浅薄的时 dismissed as something of a fad that only 髦小玩意儿，只有不法分子和贩毒人员才用。 gangsters and drug dealers used, but in recent 但最近几周，它却获得了来自各方的全新信 weeks, it has found new sources of credibility. 任。美国和中国的投资者越来越有把握，这Increasingly, investors from the U.S. to China 种替代性货币将来给普通消费者带来好处。 are betting that the alternative currency could 美国国会首次就这种货币工具召开听证some day benefit regular consumers. 会，高层执法机构和官员阐明了虚拟货币的 On Monday, bitcoin soared to a new high 好处之后，本周一，比特币的价值蹿上新高，of $700 (it rose to $900 overnight), after senior 达到700美元(随后又在一夜之间涨到了900law enforcement and regulatory officials 美元)。 highlighted the benefits of virtual currencies at 首席检察官助理麦齐利•拉曼表示，虚拟the first ever congressional hearing on such 货币是合法的，而且“有潜力推动更多有效monetary instruments. 的全球贸易”。尽管没有获得央行的支持， Mythili Raman, acting assistant attorney 但美联储主席本•伯南克也表达了类似看法。general, said virtual currencies are legit and 他在一封写给参议员的信中表示，虚拟货币"have the potential to promote more efficient global commerce." And even though they “长远来看可能颇有前景，尤其是如果这种 aren't backed by a central bank, Federal 创新有助于建立更迅捷、更安全和更有效的 Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke echoed 支付系统”。 similar sentiments, writing in a letter to 就在同一天，还爆出一条新闻，全球比 senators that virtual currencies "may hold 特币交易量最大的企业——BTC中国公司 long-term promise, particularly if the (BTC China)获得了来自机构投资者光速安 innovations promote a faster, more secure and 振中国创业投资(Lightspeed China more efficient payment system." Partners)和光速创业投资(Lightspeed The same day, news broke that BTC Venture Partners)500万美元的首轮融资。 China, the world's largest bitcoin exchange by 这些动态表明，事情正在发生变化。就trading volume, secured $5 million in 在上个月，联邦当局端掉了一个名叫“丝绸investments from institutional investors 之路”的网上贩毒团伙，他们所有的交易都Lightspeed China Partners and Lightspeed 用比特币来完成。这个行动引发了比特币大Venture Partners. 规模抛售。这个网站被取缔之后，比特币的 The developments signal a shift. Just last 价格暴跌了20%。当时这种情况可能还令人难month, federal authorities busted an online 以置信，但这次打击对这种货币来说可能是drug ring called Silk Road, which used bitcoin 大好事，因为它有助于消除比特币的阴暗面，for all transactions. The bust prompted a major sell off; bitcoin declined by 20% after the 使之更接近主流金融体系。 website was taken down. It might have been 自从丝绸之路被端掉之后，比特币就开 hard to believe then, but the crackdown was 始迎来大幅上涨，而它是否在美国兴起其实 probably the best thing that happened for the 还无关紧要。近几周来，是中国大幅推高了 currency. It helped clean up bitcoin's shady 比特币的价格。据专门提供比特币数据的 side, bringing it closer to the mainstream Bitcoin Charts称，现在约三分之一的比特 financial system. 币交易都是通过BTC China交易平台进行的， Since the Silk Road crackdown, bitcoin 而这个平台只对中国用户开放。这家公司最has made huge gains, and whether it 近取代了位于东京的Mt. Gox公司，成为全flourishes in the U.S. isn't really the issue. In 球交易量最大的比特币交易所，公司高管表recent weeks, China has overwhelmingly 示正利用最新一轮融资“实现快速增driven up the price of bitcoin. About a third of 长、拓展业务。” the currency's transactions now flow through 为什么比特币对中国情有独钟,尽管中the BTC China exchange, which is open only 国政府一向以强势干预经济而著称，但让人to Chinese users, according to Bitcoin Charts, 有点吃惊的是，这次它并没有介入比特币市which provides bitcoin data. BTC recently 场。比特币市场一直波动剧烈，但它今年的unseated Tokyo-based Mt. Gox as the world's 价格已经大涨了30多倍。 largest exchange by trading volume, and executives say it plans to use its latest round of funding to "aggressively grow and expand the business." Why the bitcoin love in China? It's surprising Beijing hasn't intervened, as the Chinese government generally keeps a heavy hand over its economy. Bitcoin is volatile, but its price has gone up more than 30-fold this year. At a bticoin conference in Singapore last 上周五在新加坡举行的一个比特币会议 Friday, BTC China's vice president Linke Yang 上，BTC China副总裁杨林科向法新社(Agence told Agence France-Presse that the currency France-Presse)表示，这种货币之所以在中 has become big in China because its citizens 国如此火爆，是因为中国人喜欢存钱，他们 are big savers and see bitcoin as a vehicle to 把比特币看成是存钱和投资的一种工具。在park and invest their money. His remarks come 他说这番话之前几周，常被称为中国谷歌a few weeks after Baidu (BIDU), often referred (Google)的百度公司(Baidu)开始对由其to as the Google of China, began accepting 下属企业加速乐(Jiasule)提供的一些服务bitcoin for some services offered by its 接受比特币。 subsidiary, Jiasule. 但是大家在为比特币的未来欢欣鼓舞之 But before anyone gets too excited, it's 前，必须指出的是 ，对比特币的大笔投资仍worth saying that any bet on bitcoin is still 然是对其潜力和日益复杂的交易技术下注，more of a wager on its potential and the 它的实际用途倒在其次。专家们表示，比特growing sophistication of its trading 币在打入主流被普通消费者接受前，还需要technologies than its practical use. Bitcoin will 克服很多障碍。像WordPress和Reddit这类have to overcome big hurdles, experts say, 网站已经开始接受比特币支付，但据专门研before it goes mainstream with average consumers. Websites like WordPress and 究数字化营销的哥伦比亚大学(Columbia Reddit have accepted bitcoin as payment, but University)教授大卫•罗杰称，这很大程度 it is largely one big monetary experiment being 上是全球范围内开展的一个大型货币试验。 tested across the world, says David Rogers, a 还有一些必须考虑的风险和物流问题: Columbia University professor who specializes 由于比特币的供应多数是固定的，导致它很 in digital marketing. 有可能会大规模通缩，由此就会引发囤积。 A few risks and logistical challenges to 换言之，随着比特币所能购买的东西数量不 consider: Because the supply of bitcoin is 断增加，每个货币的价值也在增加。所以，mostly fixed, it has a massive deflationary bias 由于每个比特币今后都能买更多东西，那消that encourages hoarding. In other words, as 费者为什么现在要花掉它呢。这是比特币行the amount of things that bitcoin can buy 业必须设法解决的一个大问题。 increases, the value of each coin increases as 另外要让比特币真正流行起来，还需要well. So since each coin should be able to buy 让普通消费者放心，觉得自己的钱是安全的。more goods in the future than it can today, it's 消费者的比特币钱包往往是存在手机或电脑hard to see why consumers would spend 里，这些设备都可能被黑客攻破。支持比特bitcoin now when they can use it to buy much 币的人总是宣称，用比特币支付的手续费要more at a later date. That's a big kink the 比信用卡支付的手续费低，但普通消费者是bitcoin industry will need to work out. 否愿意牺牲财产的安全性来省这点交易费还 And for bitcoin to take off, it needs to 要拭目以待。 assure average consumers that their money is safe. Customers' biction wallets are typically 不过联邦官员们正在制定虚拟货币的管 stored in their phones or computers, which can 理规定。比特币未来到底会如何生存,它今 be hacked. Proponents often claim that it costs 后多年中如何使用,这些问题至今都还悬而 less to process a bitcoin payment than a 未决。只不过这种货币的财运现在是前所未 typical credit card payment, but it remains to 有的一片光明。(财富中文网) be seen if average consumers are willing to 译者:清远 give up the security of their money to save on transaction costs. Federal regulators are developing rules for the virtual currency, however. How bitcoin will exist in the future, if at all, and what it will be used for years from now is unclear. But the currency's fortunes are looking brighter than ever.