If you drew a Venn diagram of anarchists, strippers, and identical twins, one of the few points of intersection would be the digital currency Bitcoin. Famous for not being the face of Facebook, the Winklevoss twins appear to be intent on divesting the currency from its countercultural past and transforming it into a new asset class for investors. This week the Winklevii, as the twins are collectively known, filed proposals with US regulators for a fund that would bring "Bitcoin to Main Street" by making speculation in the currency easier.

It seems highly unlikely that regulators will allow the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust to ever see the light of day. However, the fact that such a fund is even being touted points to the way in which Bitcoin's gradual assimilation into the mainstream is simultaneously divorcing it from its potential to be a truly democratic form of money.

Bitcoin is not just a new way of exchanging value, it is a way of promoting new values. It is an ideological enterprise: a decentralised currency controlled not by governments or by banks but by people. Back in March, when I was still starry-eyed about the potential for Bitcoin as a force for social good, I ventured that virtual currencies were no longer just a jazzed-up form of Monopoly money but may well be the thing that ends the monopoly on money. The wealthiest 1% now control 39% of the world's wealth, and just five banks hold more than 90% of all derivatives contracts – a $700tn market. Our monetary system is ripe for disruption.

Bitcoin now appears to be simply reinforcing the status quo by producing a new 1% of Bitcoin millionaires. The Winklevii are among these. Back in April they revealed they own around 1% of all the Bitcoins in existence, worth about $11m. The value has now decreased slightly and their share probably sits at a paltry $10m.

Money is only worth anything if enough people believe it worth something. Those who invested in Bitcoin early are now protecting their investment by ensuring that Bitcoin becomes "too big to fail". As there is a strong correlation between Bitcoin-related buzz and the value of Bitcoins, this involves maintaining a conversation around the currency. Which involves tactics designed to grab mainstream press attention. Like, say, filing plans for a highly speculative Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust. In the interests of full disclosure, I own 0.0001 Bitcoins, so rest assured that commenting on this article will not buy me a yacht. Not even a dinghy, actually.

Ensuring Bitcoin remains a viable investment also requires building up infrastructure around the currency, and venture capital money is flowing into start-ups doing just that. In May, Union Square Ventures led a $5m funding round in Coinbase, an online platform that allows you to buy, store and pay with Bitcoin. In the same month, another venture capital fund, Liberty City Ventures, announced a $15m commitment to Bitcoin and other digital currency startups.

As Bitcoin grows in value, an emerging elite are wielding inordinate amounts of control over the currency's future and are essentially becoming a de facto centre. A regular Bitcoin user may not be outsourcing their trust to the government or a central bank when they use the currency, but they're not exactly outsourcing their trust to people just like them, either. The principle of decentralisation sits at the very heart of Bitcoin, but this is being diluted by the currency's success. To mangle Yeats: "Things fall apart; decentre cannot hold." Bitcoin was once a revolutionary currency on every level. However, it now looks as if the revolution has been monetised.