Más de 50 disertantes internacionales le ayudarán a comprender cómo Bitcoin y Blockchain modificarán su industria, y lo prepararán para aprovechar las opportunidades.The second annual Latin American Bitcoin Conference took place in Rio de Janeiro this weekend, drawing 37 speakers and more than 200 attendees from 6th to 7th December.The wide range of speakers at the event included bitcoin core developer Jeff Garzik, BitPay’s Toni Gallippi, BitGive’s Connie Gallippi, Bitreserve’s Juan Llanos and Ethereum’s Anthony Di Iorio.Latin America provided a complex backdrop for the event, as many countries in the region face a mixture of social, political and economic pressures.In turn, bitcoin development has been impacted by this uncertainty, even as Brazil and Argentina look to lead the region's industry into a new wave of growth.Bitcoin Argentina’s Rodolfo Andragnes, one of the organiser's behind the event, expressed this optimism about the future of bitcoin in Brazil to CoinDesk, stating: "The Brazilian community believes that next year, and thanks to new services, a bigger adoption will be achieved and Brazilians will be prompt to new technologies."

Though the announcement of bitcoin core developer Sergio Lerner as the latest full-time hire by the Bitcoin Foundation was perhaps the most high-profile news, the event saw a number of smaller developments over its two-day run that showcase bitcoin expanding in a key market.Two such services, BitInka and Ripio, set their official launch dates during the weekend of the conference, as did the newly established Fundaçao Bitcoin Brasil, a local bitcoin foundation.ethereum gainsBitcoin invoicing comes to Brazil Argentinian bitcoin merchant processor BitPagos launched its Ripio service in Brazil at the event.mercedes benz bitcoinThe expansion builds off the company's similar partnership with mobile phone service TeleRecargas, which allowed it to extend bitcoin buying and selling to roughly 8,000 stores in its home market this August.bitcoin gratis hack

However, Ripio will function differently in Brazil, allowing consumers to settle boletos bancários using bitcoin.A boleto is a government-issued financial document of a specific amount of money to be paid to a merchant by the consumer within a certain period of time.In Brazil, users can select it as a payment option when making purchases online.There are 48,000 locations nationwide where Brazilians can pay their boletos, including at banks and through online banking.ethereum usd chartBitcoin users are now able to pay with the digital currency by registering an account with Ripio and submitting their invoices through the platform.comprar bitcoins brasil"For BitPagos, Brazil is one of the most important markets.bitcoin informacjeIt’s the largest country in population and GDP of the region and is the fifth largest smartphone market in the world," BitPagos CEO Sebastian Serrano said.apple bitcoin wallet app

"A big part of our focus for 2015 is going to be increasing bitcoin adoption in Brazil and the region."BitPagos was also in attendance to participate in the event's Latin American startups panel.Peru-based wallet and exchange launches BitInka launched its novel wallet product officially on Saturday morning.The bitcoin exchange and wallet service aims to integrate users’ bitcoin finances into daily life by executing all conversions and transactions against its bitcoin price index.mine litecoin and bitcoin at the same timeFurther, it emphasizes fiat currencies, using bitcoin as a means with which to provide a better money sending service.bitcoin decentralized moneyTo send money, the user inputs the amount he would like to send and the currency in which the recipient is meant to receive it.Before confirming the transaction, the application will show the user how much the recipient will receive and the bitcoin price by which that amount is calculated.

The sender bears no cost for the transaction, but the recipient incurs a 1.5% fee.For example, if a user wants to send $100 in Peruvian nuevo sols (PEN) he would deposit funds by linking his bank account.At press time, $100 equals 295.70 PEN; measured against the BitInka price index it’s 0.27 BTC – making the amount to be received 296.77 PEN, including the deducted 1.5% fee.“When youre sending money through our platform, you’re actually buying and selling a bitcoin instantly – that's why you have an index,” said founder Roger Benites.Users must have a bank account to withdraw fiat funds; users without a bank account can hold bitcoin but must be verified.Transactions sending or receiving bitcoin impose no fee.BitInka operates in Peru, Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela and plans to expand to the rest of Latin America.Bitcoin comic book attracts bidders The event, however, wasn't all business, as the conference organizers planned a Twitter-based auction of Alex Preukschat and Josep Busquet’s Bitcoin: The Hunt for Satoshi Nakamoto.

Andragnes set the opening price of 0.01 BTC in a tweet using the hashtag #bidcomic.Ten other bidders participated on the social media platform, including Di Iorio and Juan Llanos.#bidcomic 0,01 btc — Rodolfo A.(@RodolfoBits) December 6, 2014 #bidcomic +.5 Bitcoin #laBITconf @laBITconf @BitcoinComic — Anthony Di Iorio (@diiorioanthony) December 7, 2014 In the interest of time, the auction wrapped live at the event, with a winning bid of 3 BTC to be donated to Fundaçao Bitcoin.The book is currently making its way through the world to be signed by the bitcoin champions who appear in the storyline.Once complete, the comic will be delivered to the winner.Rio de Janeiro streets via Shutterstock The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is an independent media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies.Have breaking news or a story tip to send to our journalists?Now no-one can stop the increasingly rapid adoption of bitcoin around the world.

That, at least, was the message of the organizers at the second annual Latin American Bitcoin Conference that took place last weekend in Río de Janeiro, Brazil.Much discussion centered on the virtual currency as the money of the future, with several commentators suggesting that its use by individuals and corporations will soon be inevitable.Although there’s no precise way to estimate the level of bitcoin’s penetration in Latin America, Franco Amati, one of the event’s organizers, explained that Argentina and Mexico currently lead the field, with the greatest number of enterprises using the online currency.The conference’s hosts sought to strengthen the continental reach of the currency by fostering relationships between entrepreneurs, and share experiences of success and failure with regard to licensing, the benefits of open-source software, and marketing strategies.“We’re making history here,” said Diego Gutiérrez, one of the organizers, about the changes that bitcoin could bring to the international financial system.

In particular, bitcoin could help Latin Americans overcome the “financial oppression” that they have historically faced, said the founder and co-organizer of the Brazil Bitcoin Foundation, Fernando Ulrich.Ulrich explained that the idea of hosting the conference in Brazil followed on from the success of the first conference, held in December 2013 in Buenos Aires, Argentina: “This year we wanted to deal with the different sides of bitcoin: marketing, technology, and business development.” Compared with the 300 attendees at the 2013 conference, some 180 people took part this year.Many might have been turned off by the fact that the current price of Bitcoin has fallen to around US$370, compared to a value of some $1,000 this time last year.Ariel Aguilar, a young Argentinean better known as “the Bitcoin Evangelist,” told the PanAm Post that the digital currency is entering a period where it needs greater publicity: “I wanted to come here to build new friendships among bitcoin users and developers.

It was a huge event, with loads of energy.” For Mexican Lucía Cangas, a member of Pademobil, an online payment platform that acts as a virtual wallet for bitcoin, “came to network, and get involved in the latest thing that’s happening in Latin America.” Also among the attendees were Tony Gallipi, CEO of Bitpay, his sister Connie Gallipi, founder of the NGO BitGive, and Sergio Lerner, recently named a full-time developer by the United States Bitcoin Foundation, working on security issues involving the online currency.Also represented were members of Xapo, Coinbase, Bitpagos, Coinapult, 37 Coins, Mercado Bitcoin, Monetas, Ethereum, StorJ, BTCJam, among others, illustrating the diversity of bitcoin business models that currently exist.It definitely wasn’t a conference for bitcoin beginners.A single introductory video at the start of the event gave way to discussion panels taking on themes of business development, regulatory difficulties, and new technological platforms.

Several panels presented the development of digital wallets and services that allow users to store money online and to review bitcoin data through the Blockchain, “a public ledger of all transactions in the bitcoin network.” Bitcoin, many speakers at the event underlined, is not only a currency but a technology.During the first day of the conference, delegates emphasized the need for entrepreneurs and other creative minds to continue to boost innovation.Tony Gallipi mentioned that BitPay is looking to expand to Latin America, most likely beginning in Brazil.He admitted that the acquisition of bitcoins would have to be made easier for their use to become more popular.In this line, he presented Getbits, an online platform that allows Facebook users to see which of their friends know about and use bitcoin.Huego Cuevas further advised that entrepreneurs should seek to associate with those companies that already have a license and choose a geographical “corridor” to operate in — for example, between two countries.

He also suggested that bitcoin startups should limit themselves to one side of the transaction, either sending or receiving money.During Sunday afternoon’s panel on new businesses in Latin America, the experts highlighted the difficulty of finding patrons and investors in places like Argentina.“There, they think that [a bitcoin intermediary is] simply a bank; they’re not interested in the product,” said Gustavo Guida of BTCJam.“On the contrary, in the United States, they’re interested, they get involved, and they can even help you by sharing their contacts,” Guida added.Juan Llanos was tasked with speaking on one of the more controversial themes of the event: regulation.According to the US-based Argentinean, bitcoin companies should avoid attacking governments or banks.“It’s a war that can’t be won, and making such powerful enemies won’t benefit bitcoin in any way,” Llanos warned.The event ended with a call to action for all the Latin-American bitcoin community to support the Argentinean Bitcoin Foundation and Bitcoin Brazil by spreading the word about the new currency and technology.