digital currency

[dij-i-tl kur-uhn-see, kuhr-]

noun

1. any form of money or similar asset that exists only in electronic form, with management, storage, and exchange happening exclusively on computer systems.

   Players can wager bitcoin and other digital currencies on sporting events, casino games, and online tournaments.

Usage

There are numerous terms for money available only in nonphysical forms, and each has a slightly different scope. Digital currency is the broadest label, covering any kind of money or money-like asset that only has an electronic form. Some digital currencies are also virtual currencies, which are distinguished by being unregulated, issued by private individuals such as the developers of the currency, and generally localized to a particular community. Virtual currencies include tokens you can buy in online games, but they also include cryptocurrencies, which are distinguished by their decentralized trading networks and their use of advanced cryptography for security. The first widely adopted cryptocurrency was bitcoin, and all other cryptocurrencies are sometimes called altcoins. Another type of digital currency is a CBDC, or central bank digital currency. These are electronic-only versions of national currencies, such as China's digital yuan, and they are regulated by the same central bank that regulates the nondigital money supply in that country. A central bank digital currency is different from money stored electronically in an online bank account, because CBDCs are only issued and traded electronically, with no physical form.

Word History and Origins

Origin of digital currency¹

First recorded in 1990–95

Example Sentences

Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Davis told delegates at an Afreximbank meeting in Nigeria they should "seriously" consider a single digital currency, while Grenada's Dickon Mitchell said: "Such a move would symbolically and practically affirm our shared identity not just as trading partners, but as members of a truly global Africa".

From BBC

“Roblox” profits from transaction fees when predators offer children Robux, a digital currency used on the gaming platform, in exchange for sexually explicit photos, according to the federal lawsuit filed on Thursday.

From Los Angeles Times

The crypto industry had been pushing for such measures in hopes it could spur more people to use digital currency and bring it more into the mainstream.

From BBC

Those bills would prevent the US central bank from establishing a digital currency and set up a regulatory framework for other forms of crypto.

From BBC

The event was attended by the top 220 investors in digital currency.

From Salon