[vimeo]http://www.vimeo.com/63502573[/vimeo]

Bitcoin, launched in 2009 by an anonymous developer, is an intriguing technological and financial experiment. Quartz reports, there has been a recent spike in value (approximately 1,300% since the beginning of the 2013).  Starting your own currency is “not as complicated as it sounds. All you need is a system other people can understand and, most importantly, trust,” according to The Atlantic’s Derek Thompson.

That may be easier said than done: Bitcoin is baffling but this video, above, tries its best to shed some light on the concept. Created by Duncan Elms, an animator, and Marc Fennell, a radio host and self-proclaimed tech geek, the short video describes the currency in a nutshell, from “mining” to currency exchanges, and how Bitcoin is poised to change the way we think about money.

“This is a personal project done between other jobs,” Elms writes on Vimeo, explaining that as a result, not all of the data is up to date. Still, it’s a handy overview of how the system works.

Via The Atlantic