Comment on Ripple fine in relation to BOLT

2 files changed, 35 insertions, 4 deletions

diff --git a/doc/paper/taler.bib b/doc/paper/taler.bib
index e3dda1b71..1e5b9a78a 100644
--- a/doc/paper/taler.bib
+++ b/doc/paper/taler.bib
@@ -68,6 +68,36 @@
 }
 
 
+@misc{RippleFined-FinCEN,
+  author = {Steve Hudak},
+  title = {FinCEN Fines Ripple Labs Inc. in First Civil Enforcement Action Against a Virtual Currency Exchanger},
+  month = {May},
+  day = {5},
+  year = {2015},
+  note = {\url{https://www.fincen.gov/news/news-releases/fincen-fines-ripple-labs-inc-first-civil-enforcement-action-against-virtual}},
+}
+
+@misc{RippleFined-ArsTechnica,
+  author = {Megan Geuss},
+  title = {Cryptocurrency maker Ripple Labs fined \$700K for flouting financial regs},
+  subtitle = {Virtual currency Wild West is done, registration as a Money Services Business required.},
+  month = {May},
+  day = {5},
+  year = {2015},
+  note = {\url{https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/05/cryptocurrency-maker-ripple-labs-fined-700k-for-flouting-financial-regs/}},
+  url_coindesk = {http://www.coindesk.com/fincen-fines-ripple-labs-700000-bank-secrecy-act/}
+}
+
+@misc{RippleFined-CoinDesk,
+  author = {Stan Higgins},
+  title = {FinCEN Fines Ripple Labs for Bank Secrecy Act Violations},
+  month = {May},
+  day = {5},
+  year = {2015},
+  note = {\url{http://www.coindesk.com/fincen-fines-ripple-labs-700000-bank-secrecy-act/}},
+}
+
+
 @inproceedings{danezis2016rscoin,
   author    = {George Danezis and
                Sarah Meiklejohn},
diff --git a/doc/paper/taler.tex b/doc/paper/taler.tex
index 997e4097b..9b6f1ecea 100644
--- a/doc/paper/taler.tex
+++ b/doc/paper/taler.tex
@@ -332,10 +332,11 @@ In general, these off-chain payment channels, like BOLT and the
 Lightning Network, improve the blockchain based payment schemes by
 centralizing payment processing, but they remain orders of magnitude
 more costly than Taler with the same degree of centralization.
-In addition, they require that miners act far more like traditional
-payment processors than conventional cryptocurrencies, exposing miners
-to legal risks.  Taler is explicitly designed to help a Taler exchange
-navigate these legal risks.
+In addition, they require nodes act far more like payment processors
+than like conventional miners, potentially exposing miners to legal
+risks, not unlike the financial violations for which Ripple was fined
+\cite{RippleFined-ArsTechnica}.  Taler is explicitly designed to help
+a Taler exchange navigate these legal risks.
 
 GreenCoinX\footnote{\url{https://www.greencoinx.com/}} is a more
 recent AltCoin where the company promises to identify the owner of