This is HUGE for DRK

[Ryan Taylor]

I just wanted to point out to those that aren't closely following trading volumes on the exchanges that Darkcoin has been silently developing a viable USD / DRK trading pair on Bitfinex recently. It may have finally reached a tipping point of now actually being a viable semi-liquid market. USD trading as of right now represents more than 7% of DRK trading volume. And counting the other pair with CNY, DRK exchange volume is more than 10% against fiat currency. I believe this development is a critical differentiator versus our would-be competitors. ALL OTHER anonymous coins combined can't match that volume. In fact, our fiat trading volume is about the same as the TOTAL volume for Peercoin over the last 24 hours... just to give you an idea of how far the USD market has come.

I have been throwing USD and DRK through Bitfinex trades for the last week trying to add liquidity to both sides, and that effort seems to be paying off. People are actually using the exchange when there is some liquidity on it!!! The easier we make it to obtain/exchange DRK, the easier it will be for consumers to adopt and for merchants to accept. So I'd like to solicit some help to further solidify / establish the market. If you are buying DRK from USD, try to do it through that exchange (rather than buying BTC and exchanging). Eventually, I'd like to build out the markets at Cryptsy and Moolah (if they can fix their platform, which I've had issues with) as well, but right now even Bitfinex's volumes are not yet "established" enough for me to abandon my work there. Obviously, I don't want everyone to join Bitfinex to dump all your DRK, but both buying and selling a bit on that market, or helping me add liquidity at Cryptsy (my next target), would be helpful for the community to engage in. The process at Bitfinex was pretty painless to get verified and you don't even need to wait for approval before you start trading (only to withdraw or deposit funds). Cryptsy was about a day long wait for approval.

If we do this in a coordinated fashion, we can build up a few competing healthy USD exchanges. Anyone out there willing to help?

 

[MaxFangX]

Count me in! Typically I buy BTC on Coinbase and convert via Cryptsy. But I enjoy trading too, and hadn't really thought about getting USD verified on those exchanges. Will do now, if it helps Darkcoin!

 

[Ryan Taylor]

Count me in! Typically I buy BTC on Coinbase and convert via Cryptsy. But I enjoy trading too, and hadn't really thought about getting USD verified on those exchanges. Will do now, if it helps Darkcoin!

I used to do the same thing. As a buyer, Bitfinex makes a ton of sense now that volumes are increasing... here's the economics of (CoinbaseUSD > BTC > DRK) vs. (BitfinexUSD > DRK) vs. (CrypstyUSD > DRK)

1) Coinbase method:
- 1% fee + $0.15 for the Coinbase purchase (plus you pay the bid/ask spread, so the true cost is a bit higher)
- Cryptsy fee 0.25% (by the way, Mintpal is only 0.15% and has just as much volume)
- Total cost is around 1.5% by the time you are all-in and counting the bid/ask spread loss

2) Bitfinex approach:
- For deposits in USD, no fees, but withdrawals via wire transfer cost the greater of 0.1% or $20, so might not be a great way to cash out
- Exchange fees are free if you are doing liquidity-adding trades (e.g., limit orders) and just 0.1% for liquidity-consuming trades (e.g., market orders)
- You can also lend your unused USD to margin traders for about 5% per month as swap contract (and this is low-risk since the exchange enforces margin calls)

EDIT: My bank doesn't charge me for a wire transfer (I'm a premier status client), but I imagine most of you will have a wire transfer fee from your bank... Bitfinex does not charge as far as I know. Bottom line is that for small amounts, this may not make sense for you.

3) Cryptsy approach:
- No fees for USD deposits or withdrawals from a US bank account (for withdrawing they actually mail you a check, though)
- 0.25% exchange fee

Therefore, now that Bitfinex has volume, it is by far the cheapest way to buy DRK with USD. Cryptsy might be the cheapest way to convert back to fiat... of course it depends on the prices on each exchange at the time and your volumes... if you are trading in large volumes, the 0.1% withdrawal fee on Bitfinex is still lower than the 0.25% exchange fee on Cryptsy. But the $20 minimum wire transfer fee would dwarf a 0.25% trading fee if the volumes are low.

Now you can see why Bitfinex offers such a competitive advantage to Darkcoin versus our competitors. You can buy DRK fee-free if you are patient enough for placing limit orders!!! Stop paying Coinbase fees, transfer fees to send BTC to an exchange, and then fees to exchange to DRK. It's a much better approach and will help differentiate Darkcoin to have a liquid USD market! Everyone wins (except Coinbase and Cryptsy)!