Last evening Facebook released an extensive whitepaper detailing its new ‘Libra’ cryptocurrency.

Cryptocurrencies—like the original, Bitcoin—create a secure, trustworthy and verifiable technology to maintain the entries within an accounting ledger. They’re secure because they use cryptography—similar to what your web browser uses when talking to your bank. They’re trustworthy because transactions are subject to a consensus-based approval of everyone using the currency, so no one can cook the books. And they’re verifiable because anyone can come along and inspect those books—if you claim you have a certain amount of cryptocurrency, that claim can be proven (or disproven) easily.