> Alternately ... don't gamble on Bitcoin! It's not gambling if, say, I need to hold Bitcoin in inventory to run my business but I want to short it on Bitfinex

> Alternately ... don't gamble on Bitcoin! It's not gambling if, say, I need to hold Bitcoin in inventory to run my business but I want to short it on Bitfinex to hedge my exposure to currency fluctuations. Not shorting would be the gamble. > Gemini is attempting to be as legit an exchange as is possible. Coinbase Exchange is a perfectly legitimate exchange too (I work for Coinbase). But accepting deposits and lending them out to other users to short and/or trade on margin is a whole different regulatory ballgame. > It turns out that crooks and scammers see an unregulated environment as a golden opportunity The regulations here are actively hurting consumers as legitimate providers are afraid to step into the space. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy (too many regulations -> only idiots and crooks offer services -> consumers lose money -> more regulation). Edit: opinions are my own, not Coinbase's, yada yada