The reason we see it as a currency replacement is because, as we implied, the distinction between a utility token and a currency replacement has very little to do with the substance. In fact, historically, all currencies started as utility tokens. In time they became popular and they gradually morphed into a currency state. The most recent example of that is the M-Pesa case in East Africa (circa 2006), where a cell-phone token for topping-up prepaid contracts, became a regulated currency. The reality is that the distinction is a matter of use and popularity and has little to do with the function or utility.