Bitcoin fails to meet the core functions of money
Sveriges Riksbank Deputy Governor Anna Seim outlined the evolution of money from physical commodities to digital trust during a seminar at Stockholm’s Economy Museum on September 9, 2026. She stated that crypto-assets like Bitcoin fail to fulfill the three basic economic functions of money.
Three failed tests for crypto
Speaking at the Economy Museum in Stockholm, Deputy Governor Anna Seim defined money through three traditional economic functions: retaining a stable value over time, serving as a pricing measure for goods and services, and achieving general acceptance as a means of payment.
“According to that definition, bitcoin is not money,” Seim stated.
She explained that the requirement for value stability directly underpins the price stability mandates and inflation targets maintained by modern central banks.
While digital assets continue to expand across global markets, instruments lacking price stability and broad transactional utility cannot function as viable monetary alternatives.
From precious metals to digital claims
Seim traced the structural shift in money from physical coins with intrinsic metal value and gold-convertible banknotes to fiat systems anchored solely in public trust.
As cash usage declines, digital payments dominate and emerging instruments such as stablecoins and central bank digital currencies enter policy discussions.
“The underlying ‘commodity’ of money has shifted from gold to trust,” Seim emphasized, noting that institutional credibility must be actively maintained.
Textbook dogma facing digital reality
Central banks routinely rely on textbook definitions to defend their monetary monopoly.
Dismissing crypto-assets on volatility alone avoids addressing the systemic decline of physical cash.
Trust will ultimately depend on whether official digital currency initiatives can keep pace with private payment technology.
Source: Anna Seim: What is money?
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