Everything you need to know about Bitcoin explained in three minutes

Bitcoin is seriously hot right now. Yesterday one unit of the virtual currency went past the US$200 mark.

Thing is, it can be a little difficult getting to grips with the phenomenon. It’s a currency, but it doesn’t work like conventional money systems. It has no central bank or trading system. Instead, it’s open-source, peer-to-peer and in trading, it is subdivided into 100-million smaller units called satoshis, defined by eight decimal places. Confused? Don’t worry, you’re not alone.

That’s why this video, directed, designed and animated by Duncan Elms and written and voiced by Marc Fennell is so useful. It takes the inherently confusing aspects of Bitcoin and presents them in easy-to-understand terms. And that means even the least finacially-savvy among you will be discussing Bitcoin with ease in no time at all.

Bitcoin Explained from Duncan Elms on Vimeo.

Even if you’re not really interested in the virtual currency, it’s worth watching for Fennell’s spectacular Aussie accent alone.