From the OP, someone defending the receiver of the btc.
[04:53] <@Geebus> Not to split hairs, but Bitcoins are not a recognized currency in any country, and therefore hold no monetary value... I digress though.
That is their opinion. It is not the opinion of everyone. Of course they have value or nobody would waste all the time and electricity required to mine for them. Would you spend the money on the hardware to build a massive bitcoin mining operation if they had no value?