1.6.3 Bitcoin currency Bitcoin is a digital currency (represented by the currency symbol \"BTC\") that can be used to finance companies. Seedcoin, a start-up incubator, has invested exclusively in businesses using bitcoin currency, because it focuses on developing the bitcoin currency ecosystem. This financing approach is typically made available to start-ups.Seedcoin also raises funds in bitcoin currency. This task can carry considerable risk, due to the currency’s volatility. Between January 2014 and April 2015, for example, bitcoin lost over 60 per cent of its value against the U.S. dollar. Over the same period, the euro lost 22 per cent and the British pound lost 10 per cent against the U.S. currency (see Figure). This strong value volatility suggests that digital currencies may have a higher level of risk compared to more stable currencies. Entrepreneurs receiving funding in digital currency, therefore, need to consider its volatility as a risk. Another example of the high level of risk is the hacking theft of BTC 750 000 (USD 575 million) from the bitcoin exchange MtGox in 2014112. The uncertainty around digital currencies has led countries such as China and Russia to restrict how they can be used in their jurisdictions.Based on previous funding rounds from Seedcoin, the size of the investment per company has ranged from BTC 100 to BTC 500. At the time of the latest funding round, April 2014, these values would have corresponded to around USD 50 000 and USD 250 000, respectively. The target markets of the start-ups vary by region and can include Africa (TagPesa) and Latin America (mexBT). TagPesa is an exchange and remittance company, based in Kenya, that aims to make it easy and convenient for people to make transactions and transfer money internationally113. One of the service’s features gives Kenyans the ability to deposit and withdraw money from their M-Pesa (mobile banking) accounts114. In 2015, an Australian bitcoin exchange named \"igot\" acquired TagPesa. The lack of regulation of digital currencies is a key factor in their associated risk. The uncertainty and distrust around digital currencies can lead to governments being reluctant to regulate them. The impact of regulation on the success of digital currencies was shown in January 2015, when Coinbase was announced as the first regulated bitcoin exchange in the USA. The value of the currency immediately rose to reflect that news, and then immediately fell again when California’s state government labelled the announcement false115.Trends in Telecommunication Reform 2016 35 Chapter 1 Figure 1.7: Percentage change of selected currencies against the USD from January 2014 to March 2015 This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text This image has no alternative textThis image has no alternative text Source: Oanda, 2015