Investing.com - Cryptocurrencies have already made significant progress in fulfilling the criteria for becoming a widely accepted method of payment, according to a new study.That's the conclusion of a new study by the Imperial College of London.Thus far, cryptocurrencies have demonstrated the capacity to serve as a store of value, one of three fundamental roles required of traditional currencies.Cryptos have yet to achieve the other two roles: a median of exchange to facilitate transactions; and a unit of account used to measure value in an economic system.The report says cryptocurrencies will have to overcome several obstacles to fulfill all three roles of a legitimate currency.Scalability must be achieved. Price volatility needs to be eliminated. And uniform regulation must be in place.Overall, the Imperial College study is upbeat about cryptocurrencies, saying they have the "potential to upend everything we know about the nature of financial systems and financial assets."