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By market capitalisation, Bitcoin, which debuted in 2009, is the biggest cryptocurrency globally. A decentralised ledger system called blockchain is used in the creation, distribution, trading, and storage of Bitcoin, with the original goal being to address the shortcomings of fiat currency. This chapter highlights potential dangers and legal concerns when Bitcoin interacts with the actual economy and the traditional financial system. Besides, the details also discuss the platform’s design principles and attributes for a non-technical readership. When assessing its transactional potential, some recognise its potential for speculation, while others are doubtful of its admirable intent. The write-up also explores the potential of the adoption of cryptocurrencies in Southeast Asia due to the vast adoption of Bitcoins in countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines following the establishment of cryptocurrency technology and e-commerce. In addition, rankings of the cryptocurrency and legal stance from each country in Southeast Asia were exhibited as the solid foundation of cryptocurrencies existent for transaction purposes. The rise of central bank digital currencies (CBDC) and the future directions of Bitcoins were also highlighted in this write-up to spur the debate on whether cryptocurrency remains a fad of sensation or is legalised as the medium of exchange in an ever-growing digital world of commerce.

Introduction: Political stability is an essential source of stock market dynamics. Investors are confident about countries that have higher political stability. Political stability in an economy enables investors to develop their ability to predict the future and thus to tend towards longer-term and permanent economic and financial activities.

Purpose: The study aimed to investigate the impact of political instability in BRICS countries and Türkiye on their stock market volatilities.

Methodology: The study analysed the univariate exponential generalised autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (EGARCH) Model. The model employed the credit default swap (CDS) 5-year USD Bond data of the BRICS countries and Türkiye to represent political instability. The daily stock exchange index return data from 1 January 2015 to 15 January 2023 was used for model estimation.

Findings: The results of the EGARCH model indicate that political instability is a crucial factor in stock market volatility. The coefficients suggest that when CDS increases in BRICS countries and Türkiye, the volatility of stock returns also increases. The analysis shows that the impact of political instability on the stock market of BRICS countries and Türkiye is not uniform. However, the significant effect of political instability on volatility is higher for Türkiye than for BRICS countries. This indicates that investors perceive the political risk of Türkiye to be greater than that of BRICS countries when investing in the stock market of Türkiye.