Bitcoin-Central
| Trading name | Bitcoin-Central.net |
| Industry | Currency exchange |
| Founded | 29 December 2010 |
| Headquarters | France |
| Parent | Paymium |
| Website | bitcoin-central.com |
Bitcoin-Central.net was a French currency exchange operated by Paymium. It listed bitcoin (BTC) against the euro (EUR). It is no longer operated by Paymium. Later acquisition of the domain does not represent the original operators.
It was widely noted as an early European exchange that sought to operate inside a licensed banking framework and to protect user fiat deposits under French deposit guarantee rules.[1]
Features
On 6 December 2012, Bitcoin-Central announced several banking-style features:[1]
- User funds would be held at Aqoba's partner financial institution under the user's name, separately from Paymium's own funds
- User accounts would be individually protected up to 100,000 EUR by the Garantie des dépôts, the French deposit-insurance scheme
- Each account would later receive its own IBAN so it could be used like a bank account, including salary deposits with optional automatic conversion to bitcoin
- Users would be able to order a debit card against their EUR and BTC balances
- Incoming and outgoing transfers would be automated through direct access to banking networks
- Corporations would be able to use a regulated financial institution if they wished to accept bitcoin under clearer regulatory cover
Deposits and withdrawals
Bitcoin deposits were credited after a manual confirmation process. EUR SEPA bank transfers were accepted for deposits at no charge by the exchange. International wire transfers in other currencies were accepted with conversion fees.
Bitcoin withdrawals were free of exchange fees. EUR SEPA withdrawals incurred a wire fee.
Security and mobile
Accounts could use two-factor authentication with Google Authenticator OTP or Yubico's YubiKey. There was no dedicated Bitcoin-Central trading app. The account e-wallet could be reached for deposits and spending withdrawals through the Paytunia mobile app or website.
History
- The site launched on 29 December 2010.[2]
- On 5 April 2012, the Paytunia e-wallet was announced. Exchange accounts could be opened from Paytunia's web and mobile clients.[3]
- On 6 December 2012, the exchange said it was licensed to operate within the European regulatory framework described above.[1]
- On 25 September 2013, it re-launched after being closed for about half a year.[4]
Paymium later continued as a separate French exchange brand.