This Is BitCoen, The First ‘Kosher’ Crypto-Currency
By Ari Feldman August 10, 2017
A Russian entrepreneur has unveiled a “kosher” cryptocurrency called BitCoen.
In two months, when BitCoen has its “initial coin offering,” the cryptocurrency will join the ranks of Bitcoin, Ethereum and more than 900 other digital currencies that are traded directly between investors over the internet. The project is the brainchild of Viacheslav Semenchuk, a self-described “serial entrepreneur.”
The Russian news site CNews reported that the currency is being called “kosher” because 10% of its profits will be set aside to be used as interest-free loans for Jews. The currency will be accessible on Shabbat, but Semenchuk said that BitCoen was still kosher because its system is automated.
The currency will also be overseen by a “Council of Six,” a group of prominent Jewish leaders, according to Semenchuk. Any change to the currency would have to be ratified by the council. Semenchuk declined to identify the people on the council or any other investors.
BitCoen is an usual cryptocurrency because it will be centrally controlled. Bitcoin, created in 2009, is a peer-to-peer currency, with no central bank. New bitcoins can be created by anyone with sufficient computing power, in a process known as “mining.” BitCoen transactions will also be peer to peer, but only the currency’s council will have the power to issue new BitCoens.
Semenchuk told CNews that he has invested $500,000 of his own money into the project. He expects the currency to reach a capitalization of $1.5 billion in two years. According to the website, BitCoens will be available for $1 each starting October 9.
Contact Ari Feldman at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aefeldman.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
