digital currency

American  

[dij-i-tl kur-uhn-see, kuhr-] / ˈdɪdʒ ɪ tl ˈkɜr ən si, ˈkʌr- /

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.

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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.

Etymology

Origin of digital currency

First recorded in 1990–95

Example Sentences

As long ago as 2023, Fed Chair Powell said: A Fed digital currency is “something we would certainly need Congressional approval for.”

From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026

That includes when the digital asset is traded for another digital currency or when it’s sold for cash or foreign currency.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 14, 2026

He famously dubbed the digital currency a “policeman for policy,” saying in a TV interview that bitcoin’s price can inform policymakers when they are doing things right and wrong.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 7, 2026

One example was Tether, a digital currency specialist which has recently purchased so much gold its reserves reportedly outsize those of some small countries.

From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026

Nicknamed “Bitcoin Jesus” for his early evangelism for digital currency, Ver had renounced his citizenship more than a decade earlier.

From Salon • Jan. 23, 2026