The CEO Charlie Shrem of BitInstanst bitcoin exchange and underground bitcoin exchanger Robert Faielle have been charged with Money Laundering, according to NPR. It is a rare chance for the field of anti money laundering to make headlines, yet it is not a surprise. After months of controversy surrounding the new, and untraceable currency called Bitcoin, perhaps this calls into question, the legality of such a monetary option.

According to NPR’s Jacob Goldstein and David Kestenbaum:

“Bitcoin is a lot like cash — for the online universe. It doesn’t actually exist in the physical world. You can’t hold bitcoins in your hand; they exist only on computers. There is no center to the whole bitcoin system. It’s not like there’s one computer somewhere storing all the information. It’s a peer-to-peer system, run by the people who use it.”

For more information on Bitcoin and crime, listen to this radio broadcast from NPR & look for us at MFC to post an article this Friday about how bitcoin works. A conference this weekend will further discuss the role of bitcoin in the world of virtual currencies and we look forward to discussing its results.