26 Dec 2013 / scmp.com – Investors looking for a way to make money from the global bitcoin bonanza should steer clear of the pseudo currency itself and instead follow Li Ka-shing’s lead: buy in to the firms providing the services that bitcoin holders use.
That’s according to John Greenwood, the London-based chief economist of Invesco who designed Hong Kong’s pegged currency regime.
“Just like investors in days gone by made more money out of selling shovels and picks to gold-diggers than anyone ever made out of the gold mine, he is investing in the peripheral activity that bitcoin has generated,” Greenwood said.
Asia’s richest man, Li Ka-shing has invested in BitPay, the digital currency equivalent of PayPal, through his venture capital company, Horizons Ventures.
A spokeswoman for Horizons Ventures said the group would not comment on the details of the investment.
BitPay said it was “fortunate to have the benefit of many supportive investors, including Horizons Ventures”.
BitPay, founded in May 2011, handles transactions for 14,000 companies across 200 countries. About half are in the United States, with 25 per cent in Europe and 25 per cent in the rest of the world.
Bitcoin emerged in 2009 as a low-cost way of sending money electronically. It eliminates the need to funnel money through third parties, such as banks or card payment processors. And it is not regulated by a central bank. Currently, there are more than 11 million bitcoins in circulation….. Read more
