Bitcoin Q&A: Price Premiums and Arbitrage

How do we handle geographical arbitrage? Demonetisation and bitcoin price premiums in India. Arbitrage is the process of diminishing the difference in price in open markets. If differences in price emerge, they can be exploited for profit until the difference goes to zero. The problem is not bitcoin, the problem is currency controls. Bitcoin has no location as a global network, it was "in the US" to start with or "in India" to end with. What arbitrage activity tells you is not that bitcoin is worth $1200 here, but that rupees are discounted 20% against hard assets, including other national currencies. The market is sending you a signal. A currency that cannot move across borders is worth less.