Top 5 Industries to Be Disrupted by Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies

The Advent of Distributed Technology

In this day and age, the advent of distributed technologies like Blockchain has thoroughly shaken the world. Not just the Finance sector, but other areas such as Property, Advertising, and Governance among others are expected to be affected. By promising to remove intermediaries, Blockchain has set off to change the Global Infrastructure as we know it.

For now, we use blockchain technology to store and share information across a network of users in an open virtual space. This enables users to keep track of all the transactions simultaneously and in real-time. It didn’t take long for people to realize that using the same principle, a lot of other areas can be made efficient. Using transparent and trustless nature, Blockchain opens up a whole new world of possibilities.

The Looming Fear

Technological innovation can impact a lot more than our daily lives. In fact, it can disrupt entire industries and change the way we do business. The 21st century saw the rise of the Internet and the possibilities it opened up. Businesses that didn’t embrace the change were the ones that lost the most.

As new technologies evolve, it is important to make sure that the affected industries stay updated with the trends to stay ahead in the competition. Blockchain is becoming the newest technology that will impact several industries in the years to come. It is well on track to massively impact the way business is done across the globe.

Remittance Networks

Cryptocurrencies promise to provide an innovative solution to the current issues facing the remittance market. The prospect of a fast, secure, low-cost and international payment system is encouraging businesses and individuals globally to consider the benefits of cryptocurrency settlement. Industries like MasterCard, Visa, Western Union stand at a testing time as they face Blockchain technology. Blockchain technology can speed up and simplify the cross-border payments process. It cuts out many of the traditional middlemen and makes remittance more affordable. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, with their instant cross-border transfers, challenge the entire business model of the remittance Industry.

Banking

Blockchain is transforming everything from payments to how money is raised in the private market. There is a good chance, much of what we know and understand about banks today might change along with it. Blockchain technology provides a way for untrusted parties to agree on without using a middleman, i.e.: a Bank. Features of a Bank like transfer fees, cross-border transaction charges, currency rates, and the time for the money to reflect in the other person’s bank are a few barriers the end-consumers don’t like. Other significant parts of the banking industry such as clearance and settlements, Loans and credit, trade finance, etc. are in danger as well. Blockchain can help bring it all down into a single, fast and efficient framework where no one is taken advantage of.

Advertising

It is sure that advertising on the Internet will never be the same. Thanks to Blockchain technology and its inherent decentralization, the Internet is promised to the users again. Online advertising has traditionally been dependent and manipulated by large corporations. The giants with their buildings of user data manipulate their users by pushing data-centric ads. The data of the users is used against them. With Blockchain projects such as Brave, the initial promise of a truly democratic internet is coming back. With blockchain technology, advertising becomes user-centric, wherein users have a say in ads that they receive. With Brave, users are even remunerated for the ads they choose to receive.

Supply Chain Management

The Management of Supply chain is a complex industry. In any particular transport, there can be more than a hundred stages involved, i.e., cargos, trains, inventory, bills, clearing desks etc. Other than that, getting clearance from various authorities spanning several countries can be quite a tiresome process. A blockchain-based platform enables easy coordination of documents on a shared distributed ledger, eliminating the need for unnecessary paperwork. With the help of smart contracts, customs clearance at several checkpoints can be done quickly & more efficiently reducing processing times and efforts. For brands and agencies, blockchain offers an independently verifiable and decentralized way to verify spend throughout the supply chain.

Intellectual Property and Copyright Management

According to EY, “In today’s knowledge economy, an increasing share of business value is derived via intangible assets. Success often depends upon the ability to manage and exploit intellectual property (IP). For that reason, companies require managers to effectively acquire, govern and commercialize copyright-and patent-protected content.”

With blockchain, one can handle the development of IP much more efficiently and with ease. It is mapped across three separate phases of the life cycle: tokens to represent the good or asset; tracking services and contributions to IP development; and a platform to manage the sale, licensing, contracting and exploitation of IP.

Featured image courtesy of Shutterstock.

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