If the recent issues surrounding bank account closures and domestic media warnings were supposed to scare Chinese attendees away from the two-day Global Bitcoin Summit starting in Beijing Saturday, someone forgot to tell everyone.The main 400-seat auditorium was regularly full on the first day for the event's keynote speakers, which included Roger Ver, Aaron Koenig of the Global Bitcoin Alliance, and Wang Wei of the Chinese Museum of Finance.The overall tone was not so much defiance, but apathy towards greater regulation.While Bobby Lee of BTC China was noticeably absent from the day's lineup, attendees remained focused on the future and dedicated to the cause.Both the size and mood of the crowd confirmed what several of CoinDesk's local Chinese sources have been saying for a while: the community at large is tired of hearing about banks vs.exchanges, and wants to keep building.How exactly they plan to do this without fiat gateways will be a discussion point tomorrow and in the coming months.

The huge China National Convention Center, located just across the road from Beijing's 2008 Olympic main stadium, also highlighted just how niche bitcoin still remains in the overall Chinese economy, which is still booming.The bitcoin summit itself took up a relatively small space at the back of the second floor.Attendees passed massive franchising and marketing conventions, each with their own collection of booths and babes, before even seeing a bitcoin logo.Regulatory issues were barely touched upon, if mentioned at all, during Roger Ver's keynote.Stressing once again the utterly voluntary nature of the bitcoin economy, he told the audience his mission was now more that of a promoter of bitcoin's cause around the world."I'm pretty much done investing in bitcoin startups.But if you know some good ones I'm always very happy to introduce you to the right people," he said, when asked if he intended to invest further in Chinese companies.On the topic of which companies he predicted would succeed in future, Ver said "it's still too early to tell" – comparing the landscape to search engines in the late 1990s, when it was still unclear whether Lycos, Yahoo or Altavista would dominate in future years.

He continued: "But somebody's going to work it out.Somebody's going to do it right."Chinese companies were continuing to do well, he added, "I'm often more impressed with Chinese bitcoin exchanges than I am with some of the US and European exchanges."Harry Zhou, an Associate with White & Case LLP, gave another presentation on regulation-specific issues, but chose to speak generally instead of referring to current events directly.Comparing the legal situation in China to that in the US, he drew key differences between each country's definition of 'legal tender', as well as the US's federal system and competing state jurisdictions.In China, he said, the renminbi is the only legal tender and that is sacrosanct – even precious metals are not allowed.In the US, however, alternative local barter systems and gold and silver are tolerated even though the US dollar remained the only official legal tender.Other international guests on the day's speaking agenda were Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin and Anthony di Iorio from the Bitcoin Alliance of Canada.

While some booths marked with exchange names (like CHBTC) were empty, other local startups filled the spaces.bitcoin brain damageWe saw secure wallet Bifubao, mining equipment maker Gridseed Technology Ltd, and even a couple of OKCoin-branded ATMs.bitcoin map amsterdamRepresenting the alt universe was Zetacoin, promoting its Swiss-built payment infrastructure designed for countries like Kenya.bitcoin sec etfBeijing's Global Bitcoin Summit continues Sunday.bitcoin nwoPromotion girls pose during the opening ceremony of the city's first bitcoin retail shop in Hong Kong on February 28, 2014 Some 200 virtual currency enthusiasts excitedly traded namecards and participated in panel discussions Saturday at China's first-ever Global Bitcoin Summit—but several expressed shock that the event was given the green light in the first place.overclockers forum bitcoin

Bitcoin is a form of cryptography-based e-money that can be stored either virtually or on a user's hard drive, and offers a largely anonymous payment system.bitcoin bricks reviewSpeculators drove China's Bitcoin prices into the financial stratosphere last year, peaking at 7,588.88 yuan (now $1,224) in November, prompting the ruling Communist Party to take a series of steps that have triggered a tumble in the the virtual currency and cast doubt on its future."I'm a little bit worried," Eric Gu, the co-founder of the Shanghai-based Bit Angels Club, told AFP on the sidelines of the gathering at Beijing's National Convention Centre."This morning, when I woke up, I was concerned, 'Will I be able to get into this summit at all?'" This week, China's five largest Bitcoin exchanges abruptly declared they were pulling out of the Global Bitcoin Summit.The announcement followed an order from China's central bank to the country's top banks to crack down on activity related to the virtual currency.

At least 11 banks have ceased providing services related to Bitcoin, according to separate announcements, including China's "Big Four"—ICBC, Bank of China, China Construction Bank and Agricultural Bank of China.Despite government attempts to rein in the virtual currency and an order from Chinese authorities prohibiting domestic media from covering the event, the first day of the two-day summit was allowed to take place as planned on Saturday.Several attendees told AFP that they were cautiously optimistic about the future of Bitcoin, with some even voicing support for the Chinese government's stepped-up regulation of the currency, which is not backed by any government or central bank.China 'let Bitcoin grow wild' "I think the government was pretty good to the Bitcoiners in China—at the beginning," said Gu, whose company invests in Bitcoin startups."It was kind of too good.""China has the biggest exchanges in the whole world," he said."The rest of the world's exchanges combined wouldn't compare to one exchange in China.

So, the Chinese government let Bitcoin grow wild.Now they feel, 'Oh, let's slow down a little bit.'"Loning, a Bitcoin user from the northeastern city of Tianjin who declined to give his last name, said that while rumours had swirled that the summit might be shut down, the conference was "mainly an academic one; we're not here to try to influence the government".Chinese authorities may not ban the currency outright, he added, but "they may severely restrict it"."What the Chinese government cares most about is stability—even if that's not exactly what we want," he said.Uncertainty over Bitcoin's future in China did not appear to stop organisers from promoting its use at the summit.One large sign erected near the centre of the hall announced that attendees who filled out a survey would have a chance to win an iPad mini, an iPod shuffle—or one-tenth of a Bitcoin.'I'm surprised the conference was allowed to go on' Among the international attendees was Bitcoin Alliance of Canada executive director Anthony Di Iorio, who flew to Beijing from Toronto to speak on a two-hour panel Saturday evening.