Qoin, a Gold Coast cryptocurrency, has dismissed concerns about its transparency after its expulsion from the industry’s main trade group, Blockchain Australia.
According to a statement published last week by Blockchain Australia, Qoin “has been requested to stop using the Blockchain Australia logo and name in conjunction with any commercial or promotional activities.”
“We work hard to uphold and expect high standards of conduct from our members,” the statement said.
At least 70 organizations, including Victoria’s Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport, and Resources, are members of Blockchain Australia.
A representative for Blockchain Australia refused to say more.
Qoin’s chief marketing officer, Andrew Barker, expressed shock at the disciplinary decision and said that the cryptocurrency company will continue to trade.
“We welcome reports about fraud, Ponzi schemes, and pyramid schemes on social media,” Mr Barker said.
“We do not meet those criteria,” he said. “We operate with a license and within the legal framework.”
Qoin’s target market was defined as “mum and dad investors” seeking a cryptocurrency that could be used to buy products and services by scanning a QR code in September of last year.
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Facebook pages associated with Qoin offer concert tickets, automobiles, clothes, and food, as well as fitness, housekeeping, and business services.
Many cryptocurrency investors, however, have expressed reservations about Qoin’s transparency.
Alex Saunders created Nugget’s News, a Bitcoin news source with over 250,000 followers across several social media platforms, and formerly served on the board of directors of Blockchain Australia.
Unlike other cryptocurrencies and the exchanges on which they are exchanged, he asserts that Qoin may be purchased and sold only on Block Trade Exchange [BTX].
BPS Financial Limited owns both BTX and Qoin.
“It’s all a kind of an enclosed system on the inside… Mr. Saunders referred to it as a “conflict of interest.”
On the other side, Mr. Barker said that BTX and Qoin operated independently.
“Certainly not a cooperation,” he said, “but certainly criticism or debate.”
“Due to the fact that Qoin is traded on the BTX market, there must be some kind of connection between the two.
“There is a Qoin value and a BTX or Block Trade Exchange price, and these are two distinct things.”
Explanation
Qoin will be on sale in January 2020, with investors eligible to sell after BTX launches in December.
“As soon as individuals began to sell,” Mr. Saunders said, “it began to fall.”
” That’s when they began imposing restrictions such as ‘Oh, you can only sell $100 per day,’ since the exchange was always down and crashing, making trading difficult for people.”
According to Mr. Saunders, some cryptocurrency projects have been listed on several exchanges and are heavily traded, allowing for “genuine price discovery.”
“BTX has been flooded with registrations for the purpose of buying and selling the Qoin Digital Currency,” Qoin said in a December 15 press release.
“We have experienced some delays in completing the AUSTRAC-mandated KYC (Know Your Customer) and bank verification procedures,” according to the statement.
“At this time, we are requesting the community’s patience and support.”
According to a BTX information page, buyers and sellers may exchange Qoin block sizes ranging from $100 to $10,000.
According to ABC sources, some investors have faced daily selling restrictions ranging from $100 to $250.
According to Mr. Saunders, this meant that individuals who had made significant investments in Qoin may have been limited in their ability to sell.
“They have a large number of merchants that take this money,” Mr Saunders said.
“So, if a company is very successful and has received a significant amount of Qoin and delivered thousands of dollars’ worth of goods, it is trapped in this situation.”
Mr. Barker, on the other hand, said that the value of Qoin did not alter when it was used to buy goods or services from companies that also accepted the cryptocurrency and that this “had nothing to do with BTX establishing its own pricing.”
“I believe that may create some consternation, but it is stated very clearly,” Mr Barker said.
Mr. Barker said that Qoin was developed in response to concerns raised by Blockchain Australia regarding “the transparency of some aspects of the Qoin value,” which he ascribed to “third-party misinformation” on social media.
“We are not here to preach that Qoin’s value will continue to rise; our website makes it very clear that indicators of Qoin’s value growth in the past are not predictive of Qoin’s value increasing in the future,” he said.
“We have no reason to believe it will collapse.”
Mr. Barker said that he was “unaware” of how much money “Australian business people and consumers” had put into Qoin.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission did not respond to an email seeking comment.
BPS Financial Limited has not been the subject of any complaints, according to an Australian Financial Complaints Authority officer.
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