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
Digital currency Central Bank 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". The US Department of Treasury in 2013 defined it more tersely as "a medium of exchange that operates like a currency in some environments, but does not have all the attributes of real currency". The key attribute a virtual currency does not have according to these definitions, is the status as legal tender. Since 2001, the European Union has implemented the E-Money Directive "on the taking up, pursuit and prudential