Research the exchange Poloniex. They have played a major role in the creation of tens of billions USD in "value" in altcoins over the past 2 months. There is zero transparency on their operations or ownership or supposed licensing.
And look at how much of that is occurring on Poloniex. And then try and find out who runs or owns Poloniex, or how they are licensed, or how they store customer funds.
There is a huge speculative bubble going on in the cryptocoin world. Check out the history of the largest non-Chinese exchanges Poloniex and Bitfinex before getting involved. They have created billions of dollars in equity in just a couple months mostly in useless altcoins.
If that friend got into an accident while driving to Home Depot for you, would you pay their insurance deductible? If they got hurt would you pay their medical bills? Would you do the same for your off the books taxi driver?
That works until there is any sort of an accident and the driver's insurance doesn't cover them operating their vehicle as a business. Part of the commission that gets paid goes to providing insurance.
My understanding is that Bitfinex (a major exchange) can't process USD withdrawals so people are buying up cryptocoins with their balances, driving up prices. It is being compared to the situation at MtGox.
Many of the other alts have most of their volume on the exchange Poloniex which claims to be US based but offers no transparency on their operations. They offer margin trading. The fincen registration number listed on their terms page is not valid. The office address listed is for a corporation registration company in Delaware.
IMO the whole thing is a powder keg. At least it's exciting to watch.
How much did they spend on acquiring movie studios, television stations, etc. etc. unrelated from the core utility business? My internet connection fees shouldn't be subsidizing media conglomeration.