cryptocurrency

noun

cryp·​to·​cur·​ren·​cy ˌkrip-tō-ˈkər-ən(t)-sē 

-ˈkə-rən(t)-sē

plural cryptocurrencies

: any form of currency that only exists digitally, that usually has no central issuing or regulating authority but instead uses a decentralized system to record transactions and manage the issuance of new units, and that relies on cryptography to prevent counterfeiting and fraudulent transactions

Virtual currency bitcoin hit the mainstream in 2014. Bitcoin ATMs started springing up all over the world … , allowing people to exchange cash for the cryptocurrency, a secure digital payment outside of conventional financial institutions.

—Brenda Poppy

Examples of cryptocurrency in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That network eventually led him to a job at the FTX Future Fund, a charity founded by cryptocurrency exchange founder Sam Bankman-Fried. —Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2025

In past years at the World Economic Forum annual meeting, cryptocurrency firms were the most prominent down the Promenade. —Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2025

The price is controlled by the market, which operates via cryptocurrency. —James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025

The downturn in the cryptocurrency market, known as the 2018–2019 crypto winter, was brutal. —Lyssanoel Frater, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

crypto- + currency

First Known Use

2009, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for cryptocurrency

• eurocurrency
• concurrency
• currency

Kids Definition

cryptocurrency

noun

cryp·​to·​cur·​ren·​cy

ˌkrip-tō-ˈkər-ən(t)-sē,

-ˈkə-rən(t)-sē

: any form of currency that only exists digitally, that usually uses a decentralized system for issuing new units and reording transactions, and that relies on cryptography to prevent fraudulent transactions