3. High Alert for Disruption

There is an obvious reason for banks to reject bitcoin out of hand: the digital currency represents a financial and transaction system which makes them superfluous as intermediaries or middlemen. A cruel irony is that due to inherent construction errors, bitcoin isn't particularly suited to replace fiat as legal tender. But the potential of coins, tokens, and digital funds has put the fear of disruption into banks – thanks to bitcoin.

4. Get Rick Quick – Bankers Too

Bitcoin has spawned dozens of millionaires – for now. From Barry Silbert to Bitcoin Suisse founder Niklas Nikolajsen, many early adopters have partly cashed out. Bentley customized its signature «Flying 'B'», mascot into a bitcoin symbol for Nikolajsen, who carries a physical bitcoin in his pocket as a talisman.

Countless bankers – who invested first out of curiosity, then conviction – were among the early adopters. Today, these bankers populate the hoards of blockchain and crypto start-ups in Zug and Zurich. Seasoned bankers are moving to «the other side» nearly every day. Bitcoin stands for a completely new token economy, and promises a glimpse of the future of finance.

5. New Wording for Bankers

What should banks call bitcoin – an intangible asset which exists only in the digital world, alongside other cryptocurrencies? The term «digital assets» is standard parlance today for what other people call, more simply, crypto.

Ten years after the birth of bitcoin, more than 2,000 of these digital assets, or cryptocurrencies, exist – to speak only of the tradable coins. Which one will prevail? Nobody knows.