In a recent post on its research blog, Microsoft seemed particularly proud of its Azure smart contract auditing tool, which is built on Ethereum. The company also cited a report by Gartner which says that blockchain technology could be worth $360B by 2026.

Praising smart contracts, a recent post by Microsoft says that the company is expanding its blockchain-related efforts. Verisol has been a key component of this expansion, which was recently rolled out.

Verisol is a verification tool produced through a Microsoft collaboration with various universities and researchers. Short for ‘Verifier for Solidity,’ it’s an open-source protocol which allows the tech giant to not only catch bugs faster but also be applied easily to Azure Blockchain’s smart contract offerings.

One of the reasons Microsoft loves smart contracts is their ability to formally verify the parties involved. The “modest code size” and “sequential execution semantics” allows for scalable verification — reducing the need for manual processing.

Microsoft Azure: Bringing Ethereum to Businesses

Microsoft is clearly trying to leverage blockchain technology to make Ethereum (ETH) a more business-friendly network. Verisol, for example, runs exclusively on Solidity and brings formal verification for smart contracts through Azure.

Ultimately, businesses need to trust blockchain technology. Understanding the vulnerabilities in Ethereum’s smart contracts, with the DAO exploit and Parity wallet bug being notable examples, the company sought to create Verisol to mitigate these risks.

Microsoft and Blockchain Security

Microsoft’s main focus with blockchain technology has been security. It’s clear that the company believes this aspect to be the technology’s selling point.

Recently, the tech giant unveiled its Identity Overlay Network (ION), which seeks to secure personal data through a Bitcoin (BTC) side chain. The concept has been in the development stage since, at least, January 2019.

Microsoft knows that, before blockchain becomes widely popular, businesses will need to learn to trust these systems. With ION and Verisol, it is attempting to do just that.

Do you believe Microsoft will become a leader in the blockchain space in the coming years? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.