Blockchain 50: Billion Dollar Babies. Cryptocurrencies may be in the depths of winter, but it’s early spring for new business applications using the technology underlying bitcoin. Take the case of financial record keeping behemoth Depository Trust & Clearing Corp, otherwise known as "DTCC. " It's responsible for keeping the books on 90 million transactions a day, representing most of the world's $48 trillion in securities —from stocks and bonds to mutual funds and derivatives. Decades ago it was all done on paper and now, though electronic, it continues to be burdened by a myriad of duplicate procedures and reconciliations among thousands of its members. In a few months DTCC will quietly begin the largest live implementation of blockchain, the distributed database technology made popular by the bitcoin cryptocurrency.
Records for about 50,000 accounts in DTCC’s Trade Information Warehouse, where information on $10 trillion worth of credit derivatives is stored, will move to a customized digital ledger called AxCore. Germany. Women to Watch In Crypto & Blockchain.
Blockchain is not going away - Interview with Conor Svensson. Blockchain Bills. Bitcoin. Getting serious about blockchain. How an “Internet of value” can redefine the very nature of transactions and transform the global economy. Backed by sophisticated technology, blockchain can potentially disrupt every institution in some way. In this interview with McKinsey’s Rik Kirkland, Don Tapscott, coauthor of Blockchain Revolution (Portfolio, 2016) and cofounder of the Blockchain Research Institute, posits, “What if there were an ‘Internet of value,’ some kind of global distributed ledger or database where anything of value, from money to music to votes, could be managed, transacted, and exchanged in a private and secure way?”
An edited version of his remarks follows. Interview transcript Blockchain as the ‘Internet of value’ I think that blockchain is nothing less than the second generation of the Internet. But when it comes to assets, things that really matter in the economy—money, stocks, bonds, intellectual property, votes, art, music, loyalty points, identities, and so on—sending a copy is a terrible idea.
Privacy/Data Security. A day in 2040: where blockchain could take us. Richard Magrann-Wells, Fintech Leader, Financial Institutions Group, Willis Towers Watson Blockchain is more than science fiction. While you may not need to understand the mechanics behind this surprising technology, you need to understand that it is likely to drastically change our lives over the next 20 years. While that may sound bold, remember, 20 years ago, we were browsing the internet on Netscape, using our state of the art Motorola flip-phones and buying our first DVD players. Two short decades ago the idea that we would hold a computer in our hands that could order a car, pay our bills, while playing a movie would have sounded absurd. While blockchain’s impact may not be as perceptible as the internet or as tangible as cell phones – the blockchain will succeed by removing the underlying impediments that have long created delays and annoyances in our daily lives.
What impediments will be removed? Morning at home At the office Wire transfers and international payments Loans Collateral.
SXSW Preview: What’s the Next Generation Internet? Surprise: It’s all about the Blockchain! Can Dovu.io’s Blockchain-backed solution be the next Uber? | Hedge Fund Blogs From HedgeCo.Net. By David Drake Starting on the 1st of October of this year, Uber’s license to operate in London has been revoked. The Transport for London (TfL), an authority that regulates private hire and taxi vehicles made the announcement earlier this month.
TfL attributed its decision to revoke Uber’s license to the way the company obtains medical certificates, reports criminal offences and runs checks on barring and disclosure services. TfL also suspects that Uber may have set up an evasion scheme to keep officials from utilizing its app. The decision to revoke the licence of one of the world’s largest mobility companies in one of the most lucrative markets is an indicator that the current model is broken. A New Approach To fix mobility problems in the transport sector, a London-based start-up, Dovu.io is taking a different approach. Enabling consumers to find and hire transport services Dovu.io is working on a blockchain-backed system that rewards co-creators of value in the transport space.
Blockchain Might Lead the Next Social Media Revolution. Social platforms have exploded in popularity over the past decade and are now a cornerstone in our daily interactions. People around the globe use these networks to share information with each other and mutually create value. That’s the theory, anyway. Many social networks are plagued by trolls, fake news that spreads like wildfire, and antisocial interactions between users.
Currently, the main objective of social media providers is to attract more users to their platform. According to Metcalfe's law, the value of a social platform is proportional to the square of the number of users contributing to it. However, this takes the focus away from the most important aspect of a social platform: building a healthy community that actively produces high-quality content. Modern social platforms are broken There is currently no focus on ensuring the quality of user-generated content shared on today’s social platforms. This is by no means an exhaustive list. Social media companies should be worried.
How blockchain promises to speed up tech evolution | VentureBeat. Blockchain Basics. Once Shadowy Blockchain Is a New Practice for Morris Manning | Daily Report. Blockchain and Marketing. Blockchain in finance: Pioneers, prototypes and pitfalls. The financial industry hasn't fully warmed up to blockchain, but widespread adoption is coming. In the financial arena, blockchain is still immature and remains an area littered with prototypes and pilots.
That was the general consensus among panelists at “Blockchain in Finance: Pioneering applications,” a recent discussion examining the challenges pioneers of blockchain are facing in that particular field. That being said, the plethora of challenges that must be overcome is undeniably outweighed by the opportunities that exist. Market players must work together to exploit these opportunities because, as in any industry, collaboration is the key to success: each fledgling venture or application can only achieve a limited amount on its own. Some of the unique challenges that banks are experiencing when developing blockchain applications within their legacy systems include: A daunting regulatory environment Deep-seated social challenges Reputational concerns Skepticism Governance issues. Is Blockchain the Answer to Preventing Cybercrime? Get Trading Recommendations and Read Analysis on Hacked.com for just $39 per month.
Director of Edgar, Dunn & Company, the management consultants, asks the question, can blockchain or distributed ledger technologies combat cybercrime in financial systems? As director of EDC’s London office, Samee Zafar has advised some of the biggest financial services organizations in Europe and North America focusing on competitive strategy, operations, and technology. With his expertise covering retail banking, card issuing and acquiring, and electronic payments such as Internet and mobile payments his recently published blog on Finextra is a timely piece on the issue of cyber criminals.
He focuses on how even though banks follow set procedures to validate individuals and detect irregularities with hundreds of billions of dollars at stake, flaws can still be found. He said: He adds: Are Blockchain and DLT the Solution? Banks Are Exploring Hybrid Systems Images from Shutterstock. Blockchain applications in urban governence – Blockchain Futures Lab. Cities are very complex systems. They are communities of people, flows of money, and allocation of physical land. They are in perpetual movement. Local governance is a critical element in these systems.
Many aspects of cities are begging for reform; local governance (City Hall) is one of them. There are exciting experiments in local governance today. The Urban Hackathon and City Governance 2.0 movements have helped open up city data, integrate new technologies into city operations, and involve citizens in urban decision-making in new ways. Apps are letting citizens interact with their local governments in more persistent, light-touch ways.
But there are bolder experiments and more disruptive technologies on the horizon. Transparent record keeping and public archivesFraud-free votingDistributed, tamper-free registriesSmart contract administrationGrant distribution and trackingDistributed decision-making Blockchain as a data-management tool Blockchain as management automation Like this: Is Blockchain the Answer to Identity Management? | Robinson+Cole Data Privacy + Security Insider. Blockchain Technologies Corp. Speaks Before Maine State Legislature Committee on Blockchain Voting. Maine State Legislature Committee Hearing Augusta, ME (PRWEB) March 29, 2017 Blockchain Technologies Corp. praises Maine State Senator Eric L. Brakey for introducing a resolution to the Main State Senate proposing the creation of a commission to study the use of blockchain technology in conjunction with paper ballots for Maine elections.
Blockchain Technologies Corp. traveled to Maine on Monday, 3/27/17, to speak at the initial public hearing for the resolution. Many members on the committee were completely new to blockchain and they raised some interesting questions. The blockchain is a new technology that uses a global network of computers to create timestamped records that cannot be altered or deleted. However, even with the use of such a cutting edge technology, the original paper ballots filled out by voters remain the ultimate document of record. A variation of the blockchain voting system developed by Blockchain Technologies Corp. uses paper ballots.
Blockchain & Voting. AI and Blockchain. Blockchain and Healthcare. Blockchain & Education. The Blockchain and Us (2017) Ch en innovation deloitte blockchain app in media. Double Standards: The Coming Push for Blockchain Interoperability Could Get Messy. Not everyone wants to copy the world's most successful blockchain. While bitcoin's public-facing, immutable ledger has proven resilient to attacks (and a mostly reliable way to transact peer-to-peer), businesses are still looking for something else to meet their volume and privacy requirements. Yet, this search for alternatives has prompted problems of its own.
In an effort to build products that meet diverse demands, using varied and often incompatible technologies, consortia have formed to help standardize the way financial institutions and enterprises build with blockchain. At the core of the effort is a conflict over whether numerous blockchains with different technological features might replicate the complexity and inefficiencies of the current system, or otherwise slow down innovation. Working behind the scenes in this delicate balancing act are multiple standards-making bodies around the world, as well as startups and corporations. Tripathi told CoinDesk: In the act Mess ahead. Dubai Wants All Government Documents on Blockchain By 2020. The Crown Prince of Dubai announced a strategic plan today that would see all government documents secured on a blockchain by 2020. Revealed at an event hosted by the Dubai Future Foundation and the Smart Dubai Office, the final goal of the government-led initiative is to open the blockchain platform to other cities around the world.
In remarks, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum explained the effort is part of a larger bid by the emirate, one of seven in the larger UAE, to set the "standard" for smart cities. He said: "The emirate is building on that achievement by constantly working to foresee the future and keep up with the fourth industrial revolution and all the prospects of increased efficiency that come along with it. " According to a statement, the Dubai government estimates its blockchain strategy has the potential to generate 25.1 million hours of economic productivity each year in savings, while reducing CO2 emissions.
Image via Wikipedia DubaiGovernmentMiddle East. What is Blockchain? Why Does It Matter? Observations As North Carolinaâs Virtual Currency Legislation Goes Into Effect | Poyner Spruill LLP. J.K. Rowling's world of Harry Potter included an array of amazing artifacts; our personal favorites were the books and pictures that changed themselves. Two decades later, a world of Kindles and iPads echoes the wonders of Potter. Now imagine that Rowling’s world included a magic ledger. Every human had the same ledger. A. That magic ledger is a simple analogy for blockchain technology. The most high-profile blockchain application is electronic currency, specifically bitcoin. Bitcoin has not enjoyed uniformly smooth sailing. The potential implications of blockchain are breathtaking. B. So what does blockchain portend? First, faster settlement. Second, lower transaction costs.
Third, facilitating bilateral contracts. Fourth, corporate governance. Fifth, global financial change. C. Blockchain may be yet another area where technology has outstripped the law. House Bill 289 went into effect on October 1, 2016. Blockchain is the problem solver of economic issues and of our lives. What are the features of blockchain, the main advantages deriving from their usage and the future potential exploitations? As part of the series of guest posts named Thoughts Leaders’ Corner, here is a very interesting article from Massimo Chiriatti, Client Technical Manager at IBM. I hope you will enjoy it and if you are interested to the legal issues of blockchain, check my blog post here! What is going to happen in the future if the computer is always becoming smaller? Always less expensive, and always more mobile?
Soon, we’ll need to link these computers together in a way that is different from the past, with less centralization. Here, we explain the birth of distributed systems, that coexist alongside the traditional systems without replacing them. The inherent problems in verifying access rights to information and their management has hindered the development of distributed networks until the publication of the famous Bitcoin whitepaper by Satoshi Nakamoto.
How blockchain will disrupt your business. Like mobile and cloud, blockchain — first implemented in the original source code of bitcoin in 2009 — stands poised to profoundly disrupt business. If it lives up to its promise, it won't just be financial institutions that are disrupted. "If you can transfer money or something of value through the internet just like another form of data, what else can you do with it? It provides a way to establish trust in the digital world," says Angus Champion de Crespigny, Financial Services Blockchain and Distributed Infrastructure Strategy Leader, Ernst & Young. "How do you ensure something is the original copy of something on the internet? Prior to blockchain technology, you couldn't. " "If you want to prove something happened in the digital world, there is no more secure place to do that," he adds.
"Once information is recorded on there, it is, for all intents and purposes, impossible to go back and retroactively change that. History repeats itself with blockchain? Understanding blockchain. Publications - Music and the Blockchain. The promise of blockchain technology for the music industry is its ability to solve the problem of “shared facts” and to provide transparency in real time or near-real time. Advancing digital technology has created new challenges and opportunities for musicians and the music industry. From the early days of Napster to iTunes to today’s latest streaming services, the music industry has managed to adapt around the latest technology to provide new and better ways to consume music. Piracy is controlled, in part, by incentivizing the pay model and by providing a superior music download and streaming user experience.
Despite these advancements, music royalty tracking and payment processes have more or less remained the same for decades. Blockchain technology could offer a powerful solution to reinvent the way in which digital music is tracked and royalties are paid. Tracking digital music rights and royalty payments remains complicated. How blockchain will disrupt your business. How Blockchain will Transform Media and Entertainment. Can blockchain live up to the hype? | DLA Piper. CFTC Considers Blockchain Technology | Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP. Blockchain: What you need to know. Tweets Ahoy! – CreativeBlockchain – Medium.
From Bitcoin to Agriculture: How Can Farmers Benefit from Blockchain? - AgFunderNews. Recordings - ILTA's Connected Community. How blockchains could change the world. How blockchains could change the world. Provenance | Blockchain: the solution for transparency in product. R3. 8 Tech Trends to Watch in 2016. Block Chain | JD Supra. Bitcoinmagazine. Beyond Bitcoin: Issues in Regulating Blockchain Transactions. Blockchain – disrupting the future of banking and legal services? — Financier Worldwide. Blockchain technology to disrupt financial, legal fields. Blockchain: It's not just for finance anymore. Businessinsider. Uk.businessinsider. Why Blockchain? What Exactly Are the Societal Implications? How The Technology Behind Bitcoin Is Going To Change The Lives Of The Bottom Billion. This Is Your Company on Blockchain. Emerging from bitcoin's shadow: The rise of blockchain.