On the same day that the alleged mastermind of the clandestine Silk Road marketplace was found guilty for a host of crimes that thrust bitcoin into the public spotlight, regulators in New York came a step closer to licensing businesses that deal in the digital currency. First, the shadowy stuff. Ross Ulbricht, a developer who prosectors said went by the pseudonym “Dread Pirate Roberts” online and ran a $1.2 billion black market bazaar for illegal goods, was convicted of all seven counts against him, including money laundering and running a criminal enterprise. Bloomberg reported that the jury took just three hours to ... (full story)