It’s called mazacoin, and the man who developed it, Payu Harris, wants to make it the official currency of the Lakota Nation, a semi-autonomous North American Indian reservation in South Dakota. Officially launched in February, its market cap of $3.3 million places it 20th among alternative currencies (there are more than 200 “alt-coins,” although most have marginal significance).

Official adoption by the Lakota Nation would be a big development in the world of virtual currencies, because until now, the storyline for bitcoin alternatives has been  about a small group of technophiles playing with a shiny new toy. But to Mr. Harris, the idea of a national currency represents something for which he’s been striving for a long time: independence.

“I’ve been studying tribal sovereignty since I was 16,” said Mr. Harris, the Lakota who developed and is promoting mazacoin. “To be a truly independent state you have to have your own issued currency.”

Paul Vigna for Wall Street Journal.