Blockchains and shared ledgers let different companies, organizations or other entities rely on the same source of customer data and other personal information — one that’s secure, auditable and looks the same to each party. Money is used as a measure of payment for trades and goods. Usually, when you pay someone or take payment in your bank account, it’s the bank or credit card company which keeps count, stores the transaction, and records it for future reference. These are your third-party intermediaries. It is also a reference for yourself, as to how much money you still have left. Here you are dependent on the infrastructure of banks, notaries, governments, accountants, and others to tell you how much you have. Now imagine a digital ledger where you can record the transactions you conduct with either the Bitcoin currency or any other digital asset: A collective ledger where the book-keeping is neither closed nor under the control of one party.