Bitcoin Moves Closer to Regulation

On Jan. 26, a New York Stock Exchange-backed startup, Coinbase, launched the United States' first regulated bitcoin exchange. The new exchange lends credibility to the cryptocurrency, which has lost about 60 percent of its value since the beginning of last June amid fraud, hacking and theft cases that plagued the currency's stability.

The exchange's launch is noteworthy, but so is the distinction between bitcoin's value and its regulatory and business acceptance. Though bitcoin might fail should its users lose faith in it, the concept of cryptocurrencies is here to stay. The endorsement of these digital currencies by financial regulators and merchants is a move toward the broader recognition and legitimacy of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, once favored by those who wanted a currency unregulated by any government.