Digital currency of its creators. "Forbes" writer Tim Worstall has written that the value of bitcoin is largely derived from speculative trading. Bitcoin has also been criticised for its energy inefficient SHA-256-based proof of work. Digital currency Digital currency (digital money, electronic money or electronic currency) is a type of currency available in digital form (in contrast to physical, such as banknotes and coins). It exhibits properties similar to physical currencies, but can allow for instantaneous transactions and borderless transfer-of-ownership. Examples include virtual currencies and cryptocurrencies and central bank issued money accounted for in a computer database (including digital base money). Like
Virtual currency authority, nor necessarily attached to a fiat currency, but is accepted by natural or legal persons as a means of payment and can be transferred, stored or traded electronically". By contrast, a digital currency that is issued by a central bank is defined as "central bank digital currency". In 2012, the European Central Bank defined virtual currency as "a type of unregulated, digital money, which is issued and usually controlled by its developers, and used and accepted among the members of a specific virtual community". In 2013, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the US Treasury, in contrast