Bitcoin Scandals Increase Skepticism About Currency's Trustworthiness

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Even as mainstream awareness aboutbitcoin and its possibilities has grown over the past year, the digital currency's volatility has become a cause of worry for investors.

New this week that a bitcoin exchange in Hong Kong had suddenly closed, taking with it some $386 million worth of investors' money, mark the latest in a long list of hacks and scandals that have plagued the currency. It's also further evidence of what critics say are fundamental problems with the currency.

Must Read: 10 Stocks Carl Icahn Loves for 2015: Apple, eBay, Hertz and More "Bitcoin is built with clay feet," said Mark Williams, a risk management expert and bitcoin expert at Boston University. "It isn't built with a focus on trust."

Williams says the currency has a number of structural flaws that have helped to undermine trust.

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Bitcoin Scandals Increase Skepticism About Currency's Trustworthiness