[GNC] Bitcoin as asset/currency

[Jim DeLaHunt]

Hello, Mark:

On 2025-07-17 11:57, Mark Truelove wrote:
> Hi, I tried to add an account to track my bitcoin purchases.  I created the
> currency first, labeling it BTC/Bitcoin, and that seemed to work.  When I
> then created the account, choosing Asset, I tried to select BTC from the
> list of currencies and it isn't present, and I can't enter it manually
> (apparently it needs to be in the list).  Am I doing something wrong?

"How can I use GnuCash to track BitCoin holdings?" ought to be an FAQ, 
but I don't see any trace of that in the GnuCash wiki.

There is a brief discussion of it in the GnuCash Guide, section 
12.2.1.1. User-Defined Currencies, 
<https://www.gnucash.org/docs/v4/C/gnucash-guide/currency_manual.html>. 
The short answer is that GnuCash's list of currencies is fixed to the 
currencies enumerated in ISO 4217. Bitcoin is not in that list. It is 
not possible to extend GnuCash's list of currencies in a running copy of 
GnuCash. Section 12.2.1.1 gives a couple of workarounds.

This 2022 thread sheds some light: "[GNC] Adding a new currency" 
<https://lists.gnucash.org/pipermail/gnucash-user/2022-July/101806.html> 
(and its replies).

This 2022 thread also sheds some light: "[GNC] Bitcoin Lightning 
payments" 
<https://lists.gnucash.org/pipermail/gnucash-user/2022-June/101569.html> 
(and its replies).

That makes think that when you "created the currency" first, you perhaps 
created a security rather than a currency.  What exactly did you do, and 
what did you observe?

Best regards,
     —Jim DeLaHunt