While the United States Armed Forces (private mercenaries) are stationed at 737 bases, in 130 nations around the world, defending “all freedom-loving people everywhere in the world,” Randal K. Quarles, Vice Chairman of Supervision for the Board of Governors (a Federal agency) that oversees the privately owned Federal Reserve System of (central) Banks, speaking to the 2017 Financial Stability and Fintech Conference, says,

       Today, the vast majority of our payments by volume and value are processed by regulated financial institutions.  In the U.s. payment system, digital currencies [such as Bitcoin] are a niche product that sometimes garners large headlines.  But from the standpoint of analysis, the “currency” or asset at the center of some of these systems is not backed by other secure assets, has no intrinsic value, is not the liability of a regulated banking institution, and in leading cases, is not the liability of any institution at all.  Indeed, how to treat and define this new asset is complicated.

       [added 3/18/2023] Thanks to Freedom’s Phoenix for this entry.