[T]here is substantial information indicating Weber has played a key role in "AnonymousSpeech LLC."
AnonymousSpeech.com, the website associated with that company, shows it is dedicated to providing anonymous email and web surfing services to customers. An archived description on the site from 2007
said the company "specializes in international law and IT security consulting" and had been "based in Tokyo, Japan since 1996." By 2009, the AnonymousSpeech.com site
indicated the company was "located in Switzerland" and, as a result, "governed by Swiss law and allowed to delete customer data legally from its servers."
In 2007, AnonymousSpeech advertised the ability to accept bank transfer payments
to a Swiss bank account identified as belonging to "Mike Weber." The company also took payments via "E-Gold" a service that allowed anonymous, digital transfer of gold ownership between users. By 2008, AnonymousSpeech was also taking payments
via Bank Weber, which is billed on its website as a "Swiss Internet Bank." According to WHOIS records, Bank Weber's homepage was first registered to a Michael Weber at a residential address in Tokyo in 2007.
Business Insider sent a message to the contact email identified on the Bank Weber site on March 18 inquiring about the company's services. As of this writing, we have not received an answer.
By late 2010, AnonymousSpeech was accepting payments via Bank Weber, E-Gold, Weber's Swiss Bank account, and Western Union. Customers who opted for Western Union payments were
instructed to send them to "Michael Niklaus Weber" in Mexico City. In March 2013,
a note on the site indicated it no longer accepted "payments from E-Gold." However, by the end of the year, AnonymousSpeech
featured a banner boasting "We Accept Bitcoin."
