The future of digital money: Institutionalist analysis

In this study, unlike other works in Turkish literature, an examination dives into the origins of money and sheds light on the societal backdrop of the phenomenon of money and value concepts. It discusses how these concepts are reflected in the realm of virtual currencies and draws implications about the future of central bank digital currencies. Providing a conceptual map of the evolution of money, it distinguishes virtual currencies and attempts to define them by highlighting their technical differences. The fundamental thesis of the study argues that considering the sociological and institutional qualities of money is necessary and more accurate. The changes brought about by digitalization in societal structures necessitate the analysis of digital currencies with approaches from institutional economics and sociology or economic sociology. The social institution characteristic of money has consequences beyond its conventional functions. In a digitalized society, the symbolic power of currencies can become as important as their traditional functions; digital communities can create their own virtual currencies, potentially leading to radical transformations in traditional systems. Based on this perspective, the first chapter establishes a theoretical foundation by examining theories of money to address the main questions of the thesis. The second chapter explores the types and characteristics of digital currencies—e-money, cryptocurrency, I- Money and CBDC—forming the basis for examining the study main questions and arguments. In the third section, Python and Stata are used to analyse the effects of institutionalist factors on Bitcoin volumes and the results are interpreted from an institutionalist perspective.