It's not a scam. It also won't make you fabulously wealthy. Initiative Q wants a stable private currency for payments processing rather than a vehicle for speculation.
Bitcoin and other digital currencies have been running wild in recent years, soaring and then plunging in value. A few stories from The Conversation's archive offer a glimpse into their world.
Bitcoin's rise and fall to date already makes it one of the greatest market bubbles in history. In turbulent times, some have suggested it as a substitute for gold, but it lacks some vital attributes.
A bitcoin logo at a facility in Caracas, Venezuela.
Marco Bello/Reuters
Evidence of past price manipulation of bitcoin and the just-launched Justice Department investigation highlight the need to take steps against cryptocurrency fraud.
Now you see it, now you don’t.
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One of the hot questions regarding the bitcoin since the first ones were created in 2009 is its real value. We will try as well to answer to this question using two concepts in economics and finance.
Is someone else making money on your computer?
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Enterprising cryptocurrency enthusiasts have found a way to use your computer processor and electricity to make themselves money. What is cryptojacking, and how does it work?
This 2013 photo shows Bitcoin tokens at a shop in Utah. What does the future hold for the volatile cryptocurrency?
(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
With countries such as China and Sweden are studying plans to create a new form of money – a central-bank digital currency. CBDCs risk revolutionizing both the way money is created and distributed.