Is bitcoin a currency?

AL Gore, the 45th vice-president of the US, said: "I think the fact that within the bitcoin universe an algorithm replaces the functions of the government is actually pretty cool. I am a big fan of bitcoin."

Similar effusive sentiments were expressed by several well-known (and well-meaning) commentators and influencers about bitcoin a few years back.

But this year, Jamie Dimon, one of the most respected and influential bankers in recent times, who has been credited with steering J P Morgan out of the financial crisis of 2008, declared bitcoin to be a "fraud".