Bitcoin, the world’s first decentralised digital currency, entered mainstream consciousness this year: Bitcoin-focused startups are accessing venture capital and industry commentators talk about it as an important international payment mechanism of the future. But are we interpreting its significance too narrowly? In this video, Richard Brown, IBM Executive Architect for Banking and Financial Markets Industry Innovation, argues that Bitcoin’s true significance lies in its potential as a global digital asset register and in the lessons it teaches us for design of complex distributed systems. He also explains why recent law-enforcement action against operators of illegal websites that transacted in Bitcoin will help accelerate adoption by legitimate businesses.”