We humans have used all manner of things as currency.
Shiny metals, pretty seashells and smelly animal hides have all served as mediums of exchange. Heck, prison inmates use cigarettes as currency.
So I suppose it’s not that farfetched for someone to create a virtual currency. I first wrote about bitcoin, a digital currency, more than two years ago, and at the time I doubted it would evolve into a widely accepted currency. It hasn’t, at least not yet.
But its popularity continues to grow, as evidenced by a recent price spike. The value of one bitcoin, which was in the low-to-mid $200 range through most of this year, recently soared above $400 and has since settled around $350.
Since its inception in 2009, bitcoin has bounced all over the place, topping out near $1,000 in November 2013, then retreating until recently. This mysterious cybercurrency was a dream come true for computer geeks, libertarians and big-government paranoids.
http://www.dallasnews.com/business/columnists/will-deener/20151129-will-deener-bitcoins-popularity-continues-to-grow-despite-risks.ece
