A former top official of the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is jumping on the bitcoin bandwagon.

Raj Date, a banking-industry veteran who has pushed for tighter regulation of the financial system, has joined the board of a new company developing ways to get merchants and consumers to use the virtual currency.

The move is likely to add credibility to fledgling Circle Internet Financial Inc., which last month received $9 million in financing from venture capitalists.

The price of a bitcoin rose to a record Wednesday, fueled by rising expectations the virtual currency will continue to gain traction as an alternative to traditional methods of payment. The currency fetched $441 on the Toyko-based Mt. Gox exchange and $394 on the Slovenia-based Bitstamp Exchange, nearly doubling since the start of November.

The momentum behind bitcoin is coming from around the world, as amateur investors, venture capitalists and technology enthusiasts pump money into businesses that are trying to figure out how to use bitcoin to buy and sell goods and services. A growing number of merchants accept bitcoin, because the transaction costs associated with the currency are generally lower than those for using credit cards or debit cards.