Bitcoin’s lost Gold

Crypto burned by Blankfein’s cold feet

Bitcoin fell Wednesday after Goldman Sachs reportedly nixed plans to trade the cryptocurrency, adding another stumbling block for investors searching for Wall Street legitimacy for the digital money.

The cryptocurrency fell nearly 7 percent in midday trading, to a low of $6,863.39 — a stark downturn after almost two weeks of gains.

Goldman, which has been mulling for months whether to open the first major cryptocurrency desk at a bank, is backing off from the plan because of uncertainty over federal government regulation, according to an article in Business Insider.

The decision puts Goldman on a par with other banks, such as JPMorgan Chase, that have avoided the volatile digital currency.

Last year, as the price of bitcoin was surging toward a high of nearly $20,000, JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon called bitcoin a “scam” and a “fraud” on different occasions and said that he would fire any of his employees caught trading it. He later said he regretted his choice of words and has backed the technology be- hind the digital currency as being useful.

But Goldman’s outgoing CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, was more open.

“It’s not for me,” Blankfein said during a talk in June. But he added that it would be “too arrogant” to dismiss it entirely.

Goldman, in a statement to Business Insider, didn’t address the firm’s plans.

Bitcoin was also hit with more bad news after the founder of a trading platform said he would require users to provide personal information in order to trade digital currencies.

“To the extent that digital asset technology remains a legal grey area, we need to be prudent and thoughtful in our approach as we navigate the regulatory environment,” ShapeShift CEO Erik Voorhees wrote in a blog post.