For years I thought cryptocurrency was a fascinating financial experiment. It challenged banks, questioned governments and forced regulators to think differently about money. What I hadn’t fully appreciated was that it wasn’t just disrupting finance. It was quietly becoming a force in politics and government, as I blogged the other day, and it’s now gone one step beyond.

Just look at almost any political news feed over the past few weeks and cryptocurrency is no longer sitting in the business pages. It is now all over the political pages.

Donald Trump is defending reports of extraordinary personal wealth generated through crypto ventures, whilst insisting there is nothing improper about profiting from an industry that his…