From the perspective of attributes and functions, bitcoin can not be regarded as currency. Many international research institutions and government departments have explored the attributes of bitcoin. The bank for International Settlements (BIS) defines bitcoin as a "decentralized token without an issuer or representing any underlying asset / institution liability". Based on this definition, the payment and market infrastructure Committee (CPMI) of bis believes that bitcoin is not a currency, but an asset, but has no intrinsic value. The value of bitcoin is that people believe that it can be used to exchange some goods, services or a certain amount of sovereign currency at a certain time, which is completely determined by the market supply and demand. Robert Kirkby, a New Zealand scholar, points out that bitcoin holders are increasingly trading bitcoin rather than using it for payment activities; bitcoin is more like an asset used for price speculation or inflation prevention. The relevant government departments of the major economies represented by the United States and the European Union usually use the term "encrypted assets" when referring to bitcoin, but do not recognize its currency status. In February, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that bitcoin is a highly speculative asset and will not be widely used as a trading mechanism.

The lack of credit endorsement and value anchor also makes bitcoin unable to undertake the three basic functions of currency, namely bookkeeping unit, transaction medium and value storage. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) pointed out in the report that retailers use legal currency rather than bitcoin as the accounting unit, and merchants who accept bitcoin payment calculate the amount of bitcoin according to the exchange rate between bitcoin and legal currency. As a medium of trade, bitcoin has played a very limited role so far. Globally, although more and more platforms and merchants are willing to accept bitcoin payment, the proportion of real transactions carried out with bitcoin is still very low. In addition, the uncertainty of bitcoin's price and its vague relationship with economic factors make it difficult to be a reliable value storage tool. In view of its attribute characteristics and functional limitations, bitcoin gradually deviated from the original "currency" positioning and entered the ranks of financial assets.

(2021-4-5)