Bitcoin

The world's two fastest-growing economies came down hard on Bitcoin in recent weeks.

Dips followed, but ultimately the virtual currency began to slough off the news and continued to gravitate toward a loose, but tightening, trading range.

And as a former senior advisor to a Silicon Valley venture capital firm, I've seen a lot of opportunities to make a killing on technology over the years.

I'm talking about everything from ultra-fast semiconductors, to advanced sensors, to the rise of the Internet and today's mobile revolution.

But in all those years, I've never seen anything reach critical mass as quickly as Bitcoin.

Consider that less than three years ago, few but a small cadre of hardcore tech geeks had even heard of this new crypto currency.

Today, however, this virtual money is traded on roughly 80 global exchanges. It's also accepted at thousands of retailers throughout the U.S.

And it has handed some savvy investors gains of 1,000% or more in as little as a few months' time.

Yet, skepticism persists. Predictions of Bitcoin's imminent demise by a wide range of so-called "experts" have proved premature at best.

Fact is, Bitcoin to date has met every challenge thrown at it and come back stronger.