How will Blockchain grow beyond Cryptocurrency?

• Toshendra Kumar Sharma
• August 22, 2018

The blockchain is the technology for the 21st century and ahead. If we talk about the surge of new things in the recent times, then blockchain is the most trending topics. It has convinced us that it holds a lot of possibilities of making the functioning of many business operations seamless.

Blockchain as the technology was initially limited to Bitcoin an cryptocurrency exchange, however, over a period, it has outgrown its conventional use and found application in various fields like healthcare, supply chain, logistics, etc. An important point to note here is that  Blockchain comes with a multitude of benefits which makes it the universal technology. However, over a period, the developers are working on to find its usage in different fields. In this blog, I will be highlighting how blockchain will grow beyond cryptocurrency and how it will impact various business niches.

What is Blockchain?

Before jumping on to Blockchain expansion in different fields, it is essential to understand what is this technology and what are its various features which makes it so inevitable?

The blockchain is a digital distributed ledger. It is the underlying technology for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency exchange. The platform has all the information time-stamped which makes it easy for the user to track the information. Furthermore, Blockchain or DLT is the technology works on peer-to-peer transactions which means that there is no involvement of the third party in the same. It results in lowering the processing fee cost and also saves the time that goes during the validation process. On the other hand, if we take into consideration, the current system, it has a third-party interaction which consumes times and also adds to the cost of the entire process.

What are the key features of DLT?

Coming to the key features of this technology, then it can be summed up as :

1. Distributed ledger
2. Peer-to-peer transactions
3. Lesser time consumption
4. No third party involvement
5. Immutability
6. Safety and security of data
7. Easy to track

Well, with these features blockchain holds a promising future and these also make it applicable to their fields apart from financial transactions. Since, tracking of information, security of data, time-saving and cost-effectiveness are the key requirements for most of the industries thus making blockchain to be in demand.

Let’s explore what the different application of Blockchain are-

When it comes to the blockchain application then there are myriads of business niches where you can find blockchain application, here I am highlighting five unconventional application blockchain :

1. Banking and Payments: The first and primary application is banking and payment. This platform allows easy interaction between the two parties without third-party intervention. It saves time since the communication takes place directly between two parties. Thus it saves the time of validation and verification. Additionally, since there is no third party involved the processing fee or transaction fee (as applicable) is nullified.
2. Cybersecurity: This is yet another area of concern in today’s time especially when everything has become digitized. There is a need for a system that could ensure that every data or information is safe in the digital world. When it comes to the blockchain, the data here is verified and encrypted using advanced cryptography thus making it resistant to any digital threats or attacks.
3. Healthcare- Blockchain has a prominent role to play in the healthcare and medical niche. It can be used to create a centralized and secure database where the doctors can store all the medical history and could be easily accessed by authorized doctors and patients.
4. Smart Contracts- As the name indicates, these contracts are digitized and operate based on certain programming. In case of smart contracts, two parties who decide to work together agree to certain terms and conditions which gets recorded as code on the blockchain. When the event occurs and is completed following the pre-set conditions, the payment is initiated.
5. Human Resources and Verified Credentials — Blockchain is also highly recommended for human resource and verification of credentials of credentials. Blockchain ledger can be used to create an information repository which can be utilized to verify the employment history, background check, validation of credentials.

Conclusion–

The technology looks are promising as of now, and we have seen many start-ups investing in this technology to explore how blockchain can prove beneficial for every business niches. At the same time, we must remember that blockchain is a new technology; it holds a lot of potentials, but this technology still needs some transformation. It needs regularization and some rules so that it becomes completely full-proof.