Bitcoin Plunges After Hacking of Exchange in Hong Kong - The New York Times - http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/04/business/dealbook/bitcoin-bitfinex-hacked.html

HONG KONG -- The digital currency Bitcoin plunged on Wednesday after Bitfinex, an exchange based in Hong Kong, said it had been hacked and funds stolen.
Bitcoin's trading value fell about 20 percent early on Wednesday, local time in Hong Kong, but had recovered about half the loss by early afternoon.
Zane Tackett, Bitfinex's director of community and product development, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
It added that customers' losses would be addressed later.
On , one Bitcoin was worth $.
The virtual currency -- one that some people believe will transform the global financial system -- has remained a mystery to many.
This past June, a hacker stole more than $50 million worth of Ether, another digital currency, from an experimental virtual currency project called the Decentralized Autonomous Organization.
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Jack Liu, chief strategy officer at OKCoin, a large digital currency exchange, said he was not concerned about the security of his company because it uses a different system.
"We care about the health of the ecosystem," he said, although he emphasized that nobody should be dictating how Bitcoins are secured.
The blockchain ledger, part of the coding that underlies the currency, has also gained more mainstream traction, as banks see an opportunity to use the technology to speed up trades.
Bitfinex said the theft had been reported to law enforcement.
Follow Amie Tsang on Twitter @amietsang.
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