The Meaning of Money in Cryptocurrency

Abstract

With the arrival of financial innovation, digital assets and cryptocurrencies have been cultivated. There are numerous key reasons behind this speedy growth. First, the investors of retail and financial institutions are continuously hungry for a new way of alternative investment. Notably, the hedge funds and private equity funds are considered alternative investments. Today, alternative investments are well-funded and well-established with the integration of digital technologies in the financial landscape. Meanwhile, the private equity funds and hedge funds continuously growing with cryptocurrencies (e.g., Ethereum, Bitcoin) gained investors’ attention in the financial market. Secondly, there are different investment options available in the crypto market such as non-fungible tokens, decentralized finance and security tokens. Therefore, institutions and retailers are investing in the digital market following regulations of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Finally, digital assets and cryptocurrencies are easily accessible in the digital market. However, in the early days of this emergence, there were numerous complexities arriving in the way of investors’ and retailers’ such as direct purchase of cryptocurrencies. These complexities have been removed with technological advancement and make the process simple for investors in the current digital market. Retailers open their accounts with multiple crypto exchanges and purchase cryptocurrencies in a user-friendly environment. Moreover, the service providers and industries have developed a huge capital of cryptocurrencies in the current digital market. The main goal of this chapter is to investigate cryptocurrencies and ascertain the meaning of money and consumer behavior in these payment instruments.