Elyachar, JuliaWeil, Kristen I.2025-07-302025-07-302025-04-18https://theses-dissertations.princeton.edu/handle/88435/dsp01jh343w73dIn this thesis, I examine how Bitcoin’s value is interpreted, experienced, and reimagined by three key stakeholder groups – Miners, Institutional Investors, and Retail Participants – by tracing its origins through the sociocultural forces that shaped its emergence. I draw upon conversational interviews and a close analysis of both primary and secondary sources of money and value to demonstrate that Bitcoin is not a conventional form of money, but rather an extension of long-standing symbolic systems of credit and debt. Assessing Bitcoin within the crux of anthropology, finance, and the social sciences enables me to argue that Bitcoin’s value is practically indeterminate – its value is contingent upon the imagination and implementation of each user. Ultimately, I conclude that Bitcoin diverges from traditional monetary functions; each user engages with it through a unique lived experience, belief system, and perception of risk.en-USPrinceton University Senior Theses