Content uploaded by Mohsen Attaran
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Mohsen Attaran on May 01, 2019
Content may be subject to copyright.
424
I
nt. J. Applied Decision Sciences, Vol. 12, No. 4, 2019
Copyright © 2019 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.
Blockchain-enabled technology: the emerging
technology set to reshape and decentralise many
industries
Mohsen Attaran* and Angappa Gunasekaran
School of Business and Public Administration,
California State University, Bakersfield,
9001 Stockdale Highway, Bakersfield, California 93311-1099, USA
Email: mattaran@csubak.edu
Email: agunasekaran@csub.edu
*Corresponding author
Abstract: The past few years have seen an explosion in the business use of
blockchain. The technology has great potential to drive simplicity and
efficiency in financial services, and it is poised to drive the next wave of
financial service innovation. Interest in exploiting blockchain in other
industries, such as manufacturing and healthcare, is increasing, and
deployments are gaining momentum. Yet, the adoption rate is slow, and
organisations are only beginning to scratch the surface in regards to the
potential applications of this technology. Implemented properly, the business
benefits can be substantial. This article explores the changing dimensions of
blockchain, highlights the importance of this technology, reviews its timeline
from inception to maturity, identifies determinants of implementation success,
and covers some of the potential benefits of this technology. Finally, this study
highlights the successful implementation of blockchain solutions in the
manufacturing and service industries.
Keywords: blockchain distributed ledger technology; P2P networks; public
key cryptography; sharing economy; neighbourhood micro-grids; machine to
machine transactions; machine to machine; M2M; bitcoins.
Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Attaran, M. and
Gunasekaran, A. (2019) ‘Blockchain-enabled technology: the emerging
technology set to reshape and decentralise many industries’, Int. J. Applied
Decision Sciences, Vol. 12, No. 4, pp.424–444.
Biographical notes: Mohsen Attaran is the 2004–2005 Millie Ablin
Outstanding Professor of Management at the California State University,
Bakersfield. He is the author/co-author of three books, over 100 peer-reviewed
research papers, and ten commercial software packages. He has been a
consultant for public and private organisations and has conducted numerous
in-house workshops and seminars in information technology, process
improvement, and project management for Fortune 1000 companies. He is the
Founder and the President of the IES, Inc., a web and mobile app development
company and has founded, launched and managed several businesses in his
career in a variety of technological fields.
Angappa Gunasekaran is the Dean and a Professor at the School of Business
and Public Administration, California State University, Bakersfield. Prior to
this, he served as the Dean of the Charlton College of Business at the
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth from 2013 to 2017. He has over
Blockchain-enabled technology 425
350 articles published in peer-reviewed journals. He has presented about
50 papers, published 50 articles in conferences, and given a number of invited
talks in many countries. He is on the editorial board of several journals. He has
organised several international workshops and conferences in the emerging
areas of operations management and information systems.
1 Introduction
Distributed ledger technology (DLT), more commonly called ‘blockchain’, has captured
the imaginations and wallets of the financial services ecosystem. A blockchain (originally
blockchain) was defined as a decentralised, continuously growing list of records,
called ‘blocks’, across a peer-to-peer network, which are linked and secured using
cryptography. Each block typically contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a
timestamp and transaction data. Each block in the chain commits to all previous blocks
and transactions. Any blockchain system has to determine who can add new blocks to the
chain, and how it is done (Lee Kuo Chuen, 2015) (Figure 1). An important feature of a
blockchain is that it is resistant to modification or changes to the data. It is a
decentralised, distributed ledger system that can record transactions between two parties
efficiently and in a verifiable way. It is typically managed by a peer-to-peer network and
it is verifiable in the sense that blockchain uses a consensus-based approach for keeping
the ledger accurate (Rosic, 2018). The nature of the transaction is immediately
transparent on the entire blockchain. Blockchain transactions use cryptographic protocols
to ensure that the recorded data in any given block “cannot be altered retroactively
without the alteration of all subsequent blocks, which requires collusion of the network
majority” (Chang, 2017).
Figure 1 Technologies of blockchain (see online version for colours)
Source: Redka (2018)
Blockchain is a decentralised technology and has a built-in robustness. It stores blocks of
information that are identical across its network. It eliminates the risks that come with
data being held centrally. Anything that happens on it is a function of the network as a
whole. Therefore, it cannot be controlled by any single entity and has no single point of
426
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
failure. As a result, the most important property of blockchain is that it cannot be
corrupted. Altering any unit of information on the blockchain would be difficult to
impossible (Zheng et al., 2017).
Blockchain is known by its most visible implementation, bitcoin – a cryptocurrency
used to store and transfer value. Most people have not heard of blockchain (Tschorsch
and Scheuermann, 2016). HSBC, one of the world’s largest banking and financial
services firms, commissioned a study of more than 12,000 people in 11 countries and
territories, looking at their perceptions and use of technology. Among the people
surveyed, 60% had never heard of blockchain technology, and 80% of those who had
could not explain how it works. However, blockchain is making huge headway in the
finance and trade industries (HSBC, 2017).
According to one recent survey by the World Economic Forum (WEF, 2016), 80% of
global banks will have initiated blockchain-related projects by the end of 2017, and by
2027, 10% of global gross domestic product will be held in blockchain technology. In a
2017 IBM survey of 200 global banks and 200 other global financial markets, nearly
65% of banks surveyed were expecting to have blockchain solutions in production in the
next three years (Parker, 2017). Similarly, Goldman Sachs believes that blockchain
technology has great potential to optimise clearing and settlements, and has the potential
to represent global savings of up to $6 billion per year.
2 From inception to maturity
The following section provides a timeline for blockchain, from inception to maturity.
Figure 2 also summarises the development history of blockchain.
Figure 2 Bitcoin and blockchain from inception to maturity (see online version for colours)
Blockchain-enabled technology 427
2.1 Creation (2008–2010)
Blockchain was introduced in 2008 by a person or group of people known by the
pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto (2008) in a paper titled ‘Bitcoin: a peer-to-peer electronic
cash system’. The author(s) detailed methods of using a peer-to-peer network to generate
“a system for electronic transactions without relying on trust.” On January 2009, Satoshi
Nakamoto mined the first bitcoin transactions: the Genesis block (block number 0),
which had a reward of 50 bitcoins (Wallace, 2011). The first bitcoin transaction took
place between Satoshi Nakamoto and a programmer named Hal Finney, the first
supporter, adapter, and contributor to bitcoin, on 12 January 2009 (Peterson, 2014). The
first bitcoin exchange market was established in October of that year. In 2010, for the
first time, bitcoins were used to make a purchase. 10,000 bitcoins were used to buy two
pizzas from Papa John’s (Wallace, 2011).
2.2 Growth (2011–2018)
In 2011, other cryptocurrencies started to emerge. A non-profit group, the Electronic
Frontier Foundation, started accepting bitcoins. Additionally, bitcoin’s exchange value
reached parity with the US dollar (Rainey, 2011). In 2012, a global bitcoin payment
service provider, BitPay, reported having over 1,000 merchants accepting bitcoin under
its payment processing service (Browdie, 2012). In November, an open source web
company, WordPress, started accepting bitcoins (Skelton, 2012). In the same year, the
Bitcoin Foundation was launched to provide standardisation, protection, and promotion
of bitcoin as the open source protocol (Matonis, 2012). In 2013, the market capitalisation
of bitcoin reached $1 billion, and it was announced that the first bitcoin charity, BitGive
Foundation, would be established. Additionally, companies like WooCommerce began to
process online orders made with bitcoin. In 2014, the BitGive Foundation was recognised
by the IRS as the first bitcoin charitable organisation and was granted 501(c)(3) status
(Macheel, 2014). The number of merchants and organisations accepting bitcoin increased
at a rapid rate. For example, BitPay announced that 12,000 merchants had signed up for
their service (Burniske, 2015). The Sacramento Kings announced that they would accept
bitcoin as a form of payment for tickets and merchandise (Rovell, 2014). In 2015, it was
estimated that 160,000 merchants accepted bitcoin payments. In the same year,
NASDAQ began a blockchain trial (Burniske, 2015). In 2016, the Cabinet of Japan
recognised bitcoin as having a function similar to real money (Kyodo, 2016). The number
of bitcoin ATMs reached 771 worldwide (Buntinx, 2016). In 2017, the number of
businesses accepting bitcoin continued to increase. The number of bitcoins in circulation
reached 16.5 million (Linuma, 2017). Bitcoin has gained more legitimacy among
financial companies. Japan agreed to accept bitcoin as a legal payment method, and
Russia legalised the use of bitcoin (Kharpal, 2017).
3 Obstacles to rapid adoption
Awareness of blockchain technology has grown rapidly, but significant hurdles to
large-scale implementation remain, as discussed below:
428
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
1 Lack of understanding and trust in technology: Although innovative new
technologies could make millions of people’s daily lives simpler and more secure,
the lack of understanding and trust in technology is stalling mainstream adoption.
According to HSBC’s survey, blockchain is the least understood new technology,
followed by robo-advisors, or automated investment advice. The study indicates that
in order to establish trust and accelerate adoption, it is essential to increase people’s
knowledge and understanding of new technologies, build predictability, and reassure
users about security (HSBC, 2017).
2 Regulatory environment: An uncertain and un-harmonised regulatory environment is
stalling adoption. McKinsey & Company (2017) identified decentralised ownership,
international justification, and encryption and user anonymity as other challenges to
unlocking the potential value of blockchain.
3 Formal legal frameworks: Absence of formal legal frameworks will add complexity
and could delay implementation.
4 Collaboration: According to WEF’s (2016) analysis, successful applications of
blockchain will require deep collaboration between incumbents, innovators and
regulators.
5 Slow bitcoin processing: The existing network for blockchain currencies can only
process a handful of transactions per second. A bitcoin transaction could takes from
minutes to an hour. Storage methods and processing capability of blockchain
network needs to be improved for mass adoption of blockchain currencies.
6 Energy footprint: Blockchain is a game-changing technology. If the global banking
industry starts moving toward digital currencies, they need to mine bitcoins. The
process requires ridiculous amounts of energy output. According to a 2014 study, the
power used for bitcoin mining was likely to take up as much electricity consumption
as the entire country of Ireland (O’Dwyer and Malone, 2014).
Similarly, IBM surveyed 200 financial institutions in 16 countries on the barriers to
implementing blockchain technology. The top three barriers identified were regulatory
constraints, immature technology, and lack of a clear ROI. Insufficient skills, lack of
executive buy-in, and insufficient business cases were also mentioned as other relevant
barriers (Yerramsetti, 2017).
4 Blockchain potentials
Blockchain technology has special qualities that can prompt expanded efficiency and cost
reduction for many businesses. Those qualities are:
x decentralisation
x process integrity
x valuable redundancy
x shared control
x data security (transparent and incorruptible).
Blockchain-enabled technology 429
According to a WEF (2016) study, blockchain technology is not a panacea, but one of
many technologies that could form a foundation for the next generation of financial
services infrastructure. Over the last 50 years, many technologies, including ATMs,
electronic trading, and digital banking, have fundamentally changed and transformed the
financial services industry. Today, multiple technologies, including blockchain,
biometrics, machine learning, cloud computing, and robotics, are poised to drive the next
wave of financial services innovation. Blockchain technology has great potential to drive
simplicity and efficiencies in financial services infrastructure and processes, as found by
the WEF and discussed below (WEF, 2016):
1 Operational efficiencies: Blockchain could reduce or eliminate the manual efforts
required to perform reconciliation and resolve disputes.
2 Regulatory efficiencies: Blockchain simplifies and automates the compliance
process, enabling real-time monitoring of financial activity between regulators and
regulated entities.
3 Verification and validation efficiencies: Blockchain dis-intermediates third parties
that support transaction verification and validation and could reduce clearing and
settlement time.
4 Settlement time reduction: Blockchain could remove friction and accelerate
settlement by providing near-real-time transfer of funds between financial
institutions.
5 Fraud reduction: Blockchain could minimise fraud by establishing full transaction
histories within a single source of truth.
6 Reduce the need for intermediaries: Blockchain provides the ability to autonomously
execute financial agreements in a shared and trusted environment.
7 Increased transparency between market participants: Blockchain enables market
participants (regulators and regulated entities) to have access to a public record of
activity in the ecosystem in real-time.
5 Business applications of blockchain
Blockchain has far-reaching applications. At its core, it is a technology that can handle all
types of data and contracts. Blockchain has use cases in many industries where tracking
information and executing contracts are needed. However, it is a widely misunderstood
invention that has a great potential to change the digital world. Some label blockchain
technology the most important invention since the internet. The technology has attracted
the attention of many industries. The technology could potentially be used in trading
and settlement applications, smart contracts relating to financial derivatives, real
estate, bonds, music distribution, digital voting solutions, decentralised patient records
management, identity verification purposes, banking fraud detection, land rights
management, corruption control, etc. (Finasko, 2017). Blockchain enables digital asset
transactions with extremely low costs. This feature makes the technology extremely
attractive to micropayments for music, gift cards, loyalty points and mobile games.
Blockchain-based smart contract technology has the potential to facilitate and accelerate
430
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
the contract management process. Blockchain can make the process of lending money
less complicated and faster, without the involvement of any third party to scrutinise the
paper and ask unnecessary questions from the borrower. Another area where blockchain
can be very effective is land title registration. As publically accessible and distributed
ledgers, blockchains can make record-keeping less costly and more efficient. A number
of countries, including the Republic of Georgia, Sweden, and Honduras, have been
experimenting with blockchain-based land registry projects (Bagley, 2016). It is
also argued that blockchain technology potentially is reshaping the landscape of
entrepreneurship and innovation by giving innovators the capability of creating digital
tokens to represent scarce assets. The technology is giving the innovators a new way to
develop, deploy, and diffuse decentralised applications (Chen, 2018). Larios-Hernández
(2017) argues that blockchain entrepreneurship can generate semi-formal financial
services that bring financial aspirations closer to people. He believes blockchain
encourages a new type of inclusive entrepreneurship and is a suitable solution for
financial inclusion of the bottom of the pyramid (Larios-Hernández, 2017).
In a 2017 report submitted to a quarterly meeting of the Federal Advisory Committee
on Insurance, McKinsey & Company (2017) identified two major areas of blockchain
applications:
x record-keeping – storage of static information
x transactions – registry of tradable information.
Additionally, the study identified several categories where blockchain is most applicable.
Table 1 provides a summary of real-world examples and applications of this technology.
The following sections provide a brief overview of possible uses for blockchain
technology in different industries.
5.1 Banking and insurance
The technology has the potential to be used in the insurance industry, payments industry,
and financial services industry to store property records, clear and settle accounts, and
ensure the validity and execution of contractual arrangements. Blockchain enables
contracts to be executed when special conditions are met or when a financial instrument
meets a certain benchmark. Blockchain improves the authentication and consensus about
data integrity. Blockchain’s ability to execute peer-to-peer share settlement almost
instantaneously makes the technology appealing for stock trading. Potentially, this could
lead to the reduction of fees by clearinghouses and the removal of auditors and custodians
(Bagley, 2016).
An industry consortium of over 40 banks, named R3, was established to research and
develop blockchain technology for financial applications and to invest in promising
early-stage initiatives. R3 has identified use cases where blockchain solutions can
lower infrastructure and regulatory compliance costs and provide value by making
interoperability between internal systems easier. Numerous stock and commodities
exchange organisations, including the Australian Securities Exchange, Frankfurt’s
Stock Exchange, and the Japan Exchange Group are experimenting with blockchain
applications for services they offer (Velasco-Castillo, 2016).
Blockchain-enabled technology 431
Table 1 Real-world applications of blockchain technology across different categories
Categories Description Real-world applications
Static registry x Manage registry of asset
ownership
x Provide automation on specific
assets
x Tracking of containers during the
shipping process
x Gift and ownership
x Digital assets (stocks, bonds, shares)
Digital identity x Store, confirm and distribute
identity-related info
x Easily revise personal data or
other data
x Enable user to easily access proof of
bank/credit card identity
Smart contracts x Create and execute
semi-autonomous contracts on
distributed digital platform
x Project for implementation of
confidential smart contracts
x Cash equity training
x Insurance claim payouts
x Music distribution
x Self-executing wills
x Hyperledger fabric
Dynamic
registry
x Exchange of physical and
digital assets
x Streamlined low transaction settlements
to address liquidity mismatches in loans
Payments
infrastructure
x Efficient payment transfers with
improved record-keeping
x Peer-to-peer lending through bitcoin
Verifiable
data-copyright
protection
x Low-cost notary services
x Easy access to secure, dynamic
information
x Events tickets
x Storage of intangible assets
x Protection of intellectual property
x Registry of independent artists’ work
Source: McKinsey & Company (2017)
Table 2 Financial services generating biggest revenues using blockchain technology
Sectors Advantages Net gains/savings
Trade finance x Lower costs x Revenue boost of
$14 billion–$17 billion
x Speed up turnarounds
Cross-border B2B
payments
x Lower costs and fees x Saving of $50 billion–$60 billion
Cross-border P2P
payments
x Lower costs x Saving of $3 billion–$5 billion
x Improving speeds
Repurchase agreement
transactions
x Lower operational costs x Saving of $2 billion–$5 billion
x Lower systematic risks
Over-the-counter
derivative
x Reduces operational costs x Saving of $4 billion–$7 billion
Anti-money laundering
management
x Reduces duplicated effort x Saving of $4 billion–$8 billion
x Smooths the onboarding process
Identity fraud x Fewer damage payouts x Saving of $7 billion–$9 billion
x Happier customers
Source: Parker (2017)
432
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
Similarly, the global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company (2017)
analysed how blockchain technology may disrupt a range of industries by the year 2020.
The study emphasised the insurance and banking industries and points out that the
established banking industry is investing money in blockchain technology at a fast rate,
reaching $400 million during 2019. By 2020, based on the current rate of evolution,
McKinsey is expecting blockchain technology to reach its full potential and generate
$80 billion to $110 billion in impact. More specifically, McKinsey highlighted seven use
cases, referred to as ‘genuine use cases’, that will be the most pursued and will generate
the most revenue by 2020. These seven blockchain use cases focus on financial services
applications. Their advantages and the net gains they are expected to generate are
summarised in Table 2 (Parker, 2017).
Table 3 Blockchain potentials for insurance industry
Sectors Key benefits Potential use
Product development
and distribution
x Reduce commission and
operations costs
x Increase customer trust
x Offer P2P insurance
x Offer smart contracts
Pricing/underwriting x Reduce operations cost
x Include external data for
automatic pricing
x Offer on-demand/usage-based
or micro insurances
x Offer P2P insurance
underwriting
x Offer smart contracts
Payment and
collections
x Reduce costs
x Increase speed for payments
x Automated payments through
smart contracts
Claims processing x Lower average claims cost
x Improve identification of claims
events
x Automate claims handling
with smart contracts or with
sensors
Administration and
back offices
x Reduce admin costs
x Speedup process for onboarding
x Onboarding of the new
customers
x Verification of policy- holder
identity
Risk capital and
investment
management
x Reduce admin costs
x Increase reliability and
auditability
x Speed up financial transactions
process
x Use smart contracts to
automatically determine
payouts
Source: McKinsey & Company (2017)
Insurance companies face competitive challenges such as poor customer engagement,
limited growth in mature markets, and the growing trends of digitisation. Blockchain
technology offers potential advantages for the insurance industry as well, including
innovating insurance products and services for growth, increasing effectiveness in fraud
detection and pricing, and reducing administrative cost (Lorenz et al., 2016). The false
claims and scams that happen every day in the insurance industry are causing companies
huge losses. Blockchain can help insurance companies overcome issues like this, as it
brings transparent information about transactions and creates a sense of trust. Since the
Blockchain-enabled technology 433
data in the blockchain is trustable and is from a verified source, underwriters can
automate some aspects of underwriting, and lower costs and fees. Blockchain can also
improve claims processing. It can take inputs from a variety of different sources without
tampering with any information. Insurers can use the data available in the blockchain to
track the usage of an asset. Therefore, claims verification can be faster, less expensive
and more efficient.
Table 3 summarises blockchain potentials for the insurance industry (McKinsey &
Company, 2017).
5.2 Government
Blockchain can help government activities across multiple use case categories as a static
store of secure information or a dynamic store of tradable information. One area in which
blockchain can help government is record management. National, state, and local
governments are in charge of keeping up people’s records, such as birth, passing dates,
and property exchanges. Some of these records still exist in paper form. Modifying and
updating these records is tedious, superfluous and frustrating. Blockchain technology can
rearrange the record-keeping and make the records more secure. Marriage, death, and
birth certificates could be stored in the blockchain network, where one’s data will be
recovered safely. Decentralised file storage, where data is distributed throughout the
network, protects files from getting hacked or lost. Additionally, blockchain can be used
for identity management. Blockchain notary services provide a secure and inexpensive
proof of existence for any written documents related to someone’s work, protecting one’s
intellectual property. Furthermore, smart contracts can protect copyright, eliminating the
risk of file copying, and speed up the sale of creative works online (Bagley, 2016).
Blockchain can also be used for digitalised passports. The technology provides secure
storage of ID credentials. Individuals need to provide minimum information for proof of
identity. Secure voting is another area where blockchain can help. The technology
provides a fraud-proof, anonymous digital voting solution to help conduct fair elections.
5.3 Manufacturing
The majority of blockchain applications are in the finance industry. However, interest in
exploiting blockchain in the manufacturing industry is increasing. Blockchain technology
holds a great deal of potential for a range of activities in the manufacturing industry and
has the ability to radically change the face of manufacturing.
Distributed ledgers can be used in solving manufacturing challenges especially in
supply chain management, including tracking containers during the shipping process and
recording important product information throughout the supply chain. Consumer
demands for better service levels, which mean having the right product on the shelves,
are rising. The unending cycle of rising supply chain costs impacts the bottom line of all
players involved. Manufacturers, retailers, and distributors have identified supply chain
cost reduction as a critical issue to address. Additionally, excellent supply chain
performance has strategic value that could lead to (Attaran and Attaran, 2007):
x rapid financial payback, often within months
x improvements in productivity and profits
434
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
x improvements in customer positioning and product quality
x enhancements in long-term relationships with suppliers.
Table 4 Applications of blockchain in manufacturing industry
Categories Phases Applications and key benefits
Supply chain
management
x Product inception
x Product development
x Product distribution
x Product trade financing
x Product retail and use
x Product recycling/aftermarket
x Efficient tracking of containers across
multiple constituencies
x Accurate recording of all important
product information
x Support security and compliance
adherence
x Expedite reconciliation of the contract
and the transfer of money
x Improve anti-counterfeit measures
x Inexpensive registration of digital assets
IOT and
Industry 4.0
x Device identification over
blockchain
x Elimination of the central hub
x Communication with all
connected devices
x Protection through ownership
rights
x Acts as a bridge between all IoT devices
x Sensors that timestamp data on the
blockchain and save them from
manipulation
x Reduces the vulnerability
x Formation of marketplace to enable
customers to sell their data from IoT
devices
x Platform to save IoT data on a private
blockchain and share it with all business
partners
3D printing x Protection of design files
x Validation of product
information
x Distributed and assured
integrity for contracts
x Assurance of payment
x Assurance that the printer can
precisely meet desired
specifications
x Secure transfer the data to a
verified 3D printer
x Protection of design files from theft or
tampering
x Allow automatic negotiation of terms
and conditions without the need for a
middleman
x Automatically locate the most
appropriate printer
x Ensuring safe 3D printing of aircraft
parts via blockchain
x Reduced reliance on third-party
participants
Over the years, technologies such as GPS tracking, radio frequency identification (RFID),
barcodes, smart labels, location-based data, wireless sensor networks, and cloud
technologies all have played a part in a digital supply chain to unify information and
processes and monitor real-time inventory levels and customer interactions with the
product:
Blockchain-enabled technology 435
1 Supply chain traceability: Blockchain technology has great potential in the areas
of supply chain traceability and supply chain transparency (Sompa et al., 2018).
Blockchain can holds details of each component part, accessible by each
manufacturer in the production process. Blockchain enables firms to see across tiers
in the supply chain, both upstream and downstream (O’Leary, 2017). Blockchain
serves as an alternative and can improve and speed up information sharing, and
replace paper tracking and manual inspections systems that make supply chains
vulnerable to inaccuracies (Williams et al., 2013; Gupta, 2017). This potential for
information sharing can be seen as a strengthening of the overall ability to control
the supply chain and its activities (Brandon, 2016). Blockchain helps to build and
execute smart contracts, and to create trading-partner visibility and more efficient
collaboration. Blockchain’s P2P transactions eliminate the need for intermediaries,
therefore reducing the cost of each transaction (Koonce, 2016). The technology
enables a single point of contact for data, eliminates the central authority needed to
validate transactions, allows decisions based on total supply chain information, and
enables collaboration with partners (Subramanian, 2018). Additionally, blockchain
record-keeping procedures that keep track of transactional data in a secure,
verifiable, and permanent manner produce a chain of records and ownership that is
much less vulnerable to fraud and cybercrime and difficult to hack and alter.
Administrative functions will be severely reduced or eliminated due to the increased
visibility of transactions and the potential to avoid non-value adding functions. This
in turn will increase supply chain efficiency and will reduce system complexity
(Adams et al., 2017; Bridgers, 2017; Seidel, 2018; Shermin, 2017; Watson and
Mishler, 2017).
2 Logistics: Blockchain technology can also be used in logistics to reduce the
paperwork, provide important information more rapidly, prevent shipping fraud, and
reduce shipping costs dramatically. Few companies have recently tested the
applications of blockchain in logistics. IBM and the shipping company Maersk
concluded that blockchain can efficiently track containers during the shipping
process, thereby reducing the effort and necessary for the shipment (Sandner, 2017).
3 Internet of Things (IoT): Furthermore, blockchain technology has great potential to
help the IoT. The IoT is the concept of connecting any device with an on-and-off
switch to the internet or to each other. The term refers to devices such as cellphones,
wearable devices, industrial equipment, appliances, and anything else that collects
and transmits data via the internet. The concept is based on a general rule that
“anything that can be connected will be connected” (Attaran, 2017). IoT devices
collect megatons of data and information that needs to be processed and stored
securely. Blockchain provides several great ways to help IoT. Blockchain eliminates
the central hub and acts as a bridge between all IoT devices. The technology also
enables secure and robust communication with all connected devices simultaneously.
An IoT-enabled blockchain could be used as a shared ledger to record shipping
containers as they move through system. Additionally, blockchain solves the
identification problem of IoT devices and reduces the vulnerability during this
process (Gupta, 2017). Using the blockchain, the device will remain protected
through ownership rights that could easily be transferred to someone else. Both
features reduce IoT costs and increase efficiency.
436
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
4 3D printing: Blockchain technology can greatly ease the deployment of distributed
3D manufacturing value chains. The technology enables low-cost, distributed, and
assured integrity for contracts, product histories, production processes and more.
Blockchain technology can protect high-value design files from theft or tampering
through end-to-end encryption. Blockchain smart contracts allow these files to
automatically negotiate terms and conditions without the need for a middleman and
can also automatically locate the most appropriate printer (Cognizant Consulting,
2017). Moog Aircraft Group is example of a company that is using blockchain in
combination with 3D printing to print aircraft parts exactly when they are needed,
saving on inventory and logistic costs. Blockchain securely transfers the data to a
verified 3D printer, enables authentication of the part, and helps technicians ensure
that it was not counterfeit before the installation into an aircraft (Sandner, 2017).
5 Industry 4.0: Finally, blockchains are suitable for timestamp sensor data for
Industry 4.0 applications. The super computing systems AG proposed the usage of
sensors that can save and thereby timestamp their data on a blockchain. As a result, it
can be ensured that the data was not manipulated afterwards and that all standards
were met (Sandner, 2017).
Table 4 provides a summary of applications of blockchain technology in different
manufacturing sectors (Sandner, 2017; Groopman, 2017; Cognizant Consulting, 2017).
5.4 Healthcare and life sciences
Blockchain is suitable for any kind of digital data where shared write access for a number
of parties is necessary and where authentication and consensus about data integrity
are important. As publicly accessible ledgers, blockchain can make all kinds of
record-keeping more efficient and provides a solution to record-keeping problems in the
healthcare industry. Blockchain technology is being considered for securing healthcare
records, DNA data, other personal information, and possibly essential medical history
information. Big hospitals can use blockchain to store details about patients’ records.
This way, patients and doctors can directly check those records anytime, anywhere
through the network (Finasko, 2017). Additionally, it enables hospitals, financiers, and
other parties in the healthcare value chain to share information without compromising
data security and integrity. Better data collaboration between providers increases the
probability of an accurate diagnosis and the likelihood of effective treatments, and
enables healthcare facilities to deliver cost-effective care. In an IBM study of over
200 life sciences executives in 18 countries, 73% of those early adopters, called ‘first
movers’ in the study, expect that blockchain will help them overcome bureaucratic
processes and legacy systems that slow down their ability to innovate and adapt.
They expect to have a blockchain network in production by 2020. They hope that the
technology will bring them closer to the patient, in an industry where there is a
widespread lack of consumer trust (IBM Institute for Business Value, 2018). In
May 2016, du (one of the largest telecom operators) announced a pilot program to
facilitate the secure transmission of electronic health records (EHRs) through a
blockchain-based solution in the United Arab Emirate (UAE) (Rizzo, 2016).
Pharmaceutical research communities can also use blockchain for securing medical
and health-related supply chain data. Blockchain also makes it possible to detect the full
spectrum of complications related to pharmaceutical treatment. Controlled substance
Blockchain-enabled technology 437
abuse is becoming more common in this country. Healthcare issues associated with
opioid overdose have become epidemic. Blockchain can be used to track dissension of
controlled substance. The technology can create an industry-wide, single source of
aggregate information about any controlled substance orders for each dispenser. With
such information, the seller can use analytics to determine how many opioids are too
many for a dispenser to order (IBM Institute for Business Value, 2018). Table 5 provides
a summary of applications of blockchain technology in healthcare and life sciences.
Table 5 Blockchain potentials for healthcare and life sciences
Categories Potential use Key benefits
Patient x Patient empowerment
x Give patients the
opportunity to share their
data securely across their
healthcare providers
x Increase patient trust
x Improve patient access to trusted data
x Facilitate better collaboration
x Increase transparency
x Improve and personalise the patient
experience
x Increase efficiency and reduce operations
costs
x Create opportunities for major
advancements in patient care
Regulation and
compliance
x Compliance tracking
x Smart contract-based check
x Establish a trusted audit trail verifiable in
real-time
x Establish a platform to automatically
enforce privacy regulations
x Enable tracking of who has shared data
and with whom, without revealing the
data itself
x Reduce operations cost
Intercompany
process
x Transfer of funds
x Medical devices supply
chain
x Temperature-controlled
supply chains
x Services
x Facilitate automated payments through
smart contracts
x Increase speed for payments
x Provide full transparency of assets across
the supply chain all the way to the patient
x Bring all transactions into a single
platform, making planning and
compliance easier
x Increase efficiency and reduce waste and
operating costs
x Help preserve the intended attributes of
temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals
along the supply chain
Source: IBM Institute for Business Value (2018)
438
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
Table 5 Blockchain potentials for healthcare and life sciences (continued)
Categories Potential use Key benefits
Administration
and back offices
x Revenue management x Improve efficiencies in tracking and
tracing areas where leakage occurs
x Reduce admin costs
x Increase reliability and auditability
x Speed up financial transactions process
Pharmaceuticals x Verifying drug provenance
x Create an industry-wide,
single source of aggregate
information
x Track and trace pharmaceuticals
x Help prevent the transport and sale of
counterfeit products
x Make it is possible to detect the full
spectrum of complications related to
pharmaceutical treatment
Source: IBM Institute for Business Value (2018)
5.5 Food industry
Supply chains in this industry are highly complex. Blockchain is considered as a potential
enabler of transparency and traceability with the potential to increase product integrity,
minimise fraud, and maximise consumer safety (Coyne, 2017; Yuva, 2017).
6 New business applications for the blockchain
Until recently, blockchain technology was primarily of interest to financial institutions.
The ability of blockchain to authenticate digital information and create smart contracts is
leveraging the usefulness of technology on a truly world-changing scale. The new breed
of programmable blockchain platforms, such as Ethereum, which provide decentralised
computational power, is enhancing the applicability of this technology and making it
applicable to a wide range of cases and industries. Blockchain solutions can help cut
costs and make many services more competitive. Blockchain technology is being actively
considered by the food and beverage, automotive, electronics, aerospace, and defence
industries to secure batch and lot, quality, safety, and traceability information along the
supply chains. Companies like IBM and Microsoft are providing blockchain solutions to
a number of industries (Velasco-Castillo, 2016).
Blockchain is commonly associated with the bitcoin cryptocurrency. The potential
future environment for blockchain economy is a scenario in which cryptocurrency
replaces current monetary systems on a global basis. This will have profound
implications for the future exchange of value (Rouse, 2018). Blockchain’s digital
democratisation is expected to foster emerging markets and economies as described
below:
x Decentralised sharing economy: Distributed ledgers enable peer-to-peer payments,
opening the door to direct interactions between involved parties and creating a truly
decentralised sharing economy. OpenBazaar is an example of peer-to-peer eBay,
Blockchain-enabled technology 439
where blockchain technology is used. Users can transact with OpenBazaar vendors
without paying transaction fees (Bagley, 2016).
x Neighbourhood micro-grids: This concept refers to neighbours who are empowered
to produce, consume, and purchase power within their community. Blockchain
technology enables the buying and selling of the excess energy generated by solar
panels using transactive energy platforms. LO3 Energy, a young New York
company, is developing applications for a distributed energy supply system that
draws on renewably generated sources for a more resilient, customer-driven
economy. In 2016, the company enabled the small-scale trading of environmentally
friendly electricity among neighbours who did not have their own solar systems and
those who produced excess solar electricity in Brooklyn, NY (Breuer, 2017).
x Personal data marketplace: Today, people are using social media platforms like
Facebook to exchange their personal data for free. Historically, the users who
generate the personal data have not been included in the selling and buying of that
data. Blockchain technology enables people to manage and sell the data their online
activity generates. The key precondition for creation of a personal data marketplace
is user privacy. A blockchain network guarantees that there is always a smart
contract between the data buyer and sellers that governs how consumers’ personal
information will be used. A few companies, including Wibson and Opiria, a
European startup launched in 2017, announced the launch of their blockchain-based,
decentralised personal data marketplace (Egorova, 2018; Wibson, 2018). Both
marketplaces are supporting consumers’ ability to securely sell validated personal
information in a trusted environment. Individuals can connect to data sources such as
Facebook, monitor offers from data buyers and sell their personal data. Businesses
can buy personal data directly from consumers using bitcoins or token, the internal
currency used for rewards. Consumers receive payment for sharing access to their
data when the transaction is confirmed. The founders of Opiria claimed that the
global trading volume of personal data has reached $250 billion (Egorova, 2018).
x Machine to machine (M2M) transactions: M2M refers to a technology that enables
networked devices to remotely exchange information and perform actions without
human assistance. Manufacturers use the real-time communication abilities of M2M
to allow them to remotely track their supply chains and monitor warehouse
operations from any location. M2M communication is often used for warehouse
management, traffic control, logistic services, supply chain management, fleet
management and telemedicine (Rouse, 2010). M2M transactions are another
emerging aspect of the blockchain technology where machines could use
blockchains to become autonomous market participants with their own bank
accounts (Rouse, 2018). It is expected that advances in artificial intelligence (AI)
will enable machines to lease themselves out, pay for their own maintenance,
purchase their own replacement parts, and keep their own transactional records using
blockchain (Rouse, 2018).
The French automaker, Renault, is piloting a digitised car maintenance program,
which uses blockchain technology to log all car repair and maintenance history in
one place. The next stage of this pilot program is vehicle-based microtransactions –
integrating the IoT with the exchange of value. Another example of blockchain
440
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
application is blockchain-enabled tollbooths, introduced by Oaken Innovation
Company for Tesla cars. The tollbooths and cars both have Ethereum nodes, which
use smart contracts to trigger M2M transactions as the cars pass through the
tollbooths (Groopman, 2017).
x Smart cities: Smart cities are using information and communication technologies to
increase operational efficiency, share information with citizens, and improve both
the quality of services and citizen welfare. Blockchains are suitable for autonomous
transactions between networked devices and machines. An electric car could pay a
charging station for electric power or pay a toll for crossing a tollgate. German utility
company, RWE, is exploring the idea of blockchain-enabled smart charging stations.
Bankymoon, a South African company, allows users of smart meters to pay for
electricity with bitcoin (Velasco-Castillo, 2016).
x Digital medicine: Digital medicine combines a prescription medication with an
ingestible sensor component. After a user ingests the pill, the pill starts to transmit
data to a patch, which is then stored on a person’s smartphone in an app. Digital
medicines are designed to communicate to mobile and/or web-based applications
about what and when a patient has taken a specific dose of medication at a certain
time and sends that information to other components of the digital system that can
also show how patient’s body is responding (Chapman, 2018). While there is only
one ‘e-Pill’ on the market right now, there is a good chance that all our medicine
could look like this in the future. That means we are going to have a lot of medical
data and we are going to need a high-security place to store all of them. This is
where blockchain will have its chance to shine.
7 Summary and conclusions
Traditional banking systems are overrun with fraud, additional fees, and lots of
paperwork. Blockchain offers people a way to gain back the trust they had lost to the
traditional banking system because blockchain functions as a digital financial ledger and
records every transaction in an unalterable public space. Blockchain is also accessible
to anyone connected to the internet. Given how completely disruptive blockchain
technology is, the global banking community is scrambling to implement the technology
into its existing infrastructure. But banks are not the only entities about to be disrupted by
blockchain. The technology is a game changer. It will make life simpler and safer at the
same time. With it, we can change the way we store personal information and make
transactions for good and services. We can create a permanent and immutable record of
every transaction. This impenetrable digital ledger makes fraud, hacking, data theft, and
information loss impossible. The technology would affect every industry in the world,
from manufacturing to retail to transportation to healthcare to real estate to crowdfunding
initiatives. Hence, why the bigger companies in the world such as Google, IBM,
Microsoft, American Express, Walmart, Nestle, Chase, Intel, Hitachi and Dole are all
trying to become early adopters of blockchain. Nearly $400 trillion in various industries
is set to be transformed by blockchain.
Blockchain-enabled technology 441
7.1 Future directions
As discussed in this paper, the core technology to build cryptocurrencies including
bitcoin is blockchain. The rise of bitcoin has brought attention to the underlying
technology empowering digital currencies-blockchain technology. The rise of
cryptocurrencies helps exponential growth of blockchain since transactions of digital
currencies like bitcoin get recorded on the blockchain. The number of merchants
accepting digital currencies such as bitcoin has only increased at a modest annual rate.
Mass adoption of bitcoin has not happened yet because in its current form, bitcoin
is not capable of fulfilling the role of money. That means most bitcoin transactions
take ten minutes to be approved. The existing bitcoin network can only process
4–6 transactions per second. That means most bitcoin transactions take ten minutes to be
approved. In contrast, credit card networks can process 2,000 transactions per second for
credit card approval of less than ten seconds. Merchants see a need to improve upon
storage methods and processing capability of blockchain currencies for the exponential
growth needed for mass adoption. Improving the main disadvantages of bitcoin, big
breakthrough could finally be here soon.
Additionally, blockchain could be well combined with big data. Blockchain could be
used to store important data and ensure the data is original as it is distributed and secure.
Additionally, user trading patterns and transactions on blockchain could be extracted and
be used for big data analytics. Finally, as more and more blockchain applications for
different fields are appearing, traditional industries could make use of blockchain to
improve performance.
References
Adams, R., Parry, G., Godsiff, P. and Ward, P. (2017) ‘The future of money and further
applications of the blockchain’, Strategic Change, Vol. 26, No. 5, pp.417–422.
Attaran, M. (2017) ‘The internet of things: limitless opportunities for business and society’, Journal
of Strategic Innovation and Sustainability, Vol. 12, No. 1, pp.10–29.
Attaran, M. and Attaran, S. (2007) ‘Collaborative supply chain management: the most promising
practice for building efficient and sustainable supply chains’, Business Process Management
Journal, Vol. 13, No. 3, pp.390–404.
Bagley, J. (2016) The Blockchain a New Web 3.0? [online] https://blockgeeks.com/guides/what-is-
blockchain-technology (accessed 10 March 2018).
Brandon, D. (2016) ‘The blockchain: the future of business information systems?’, International
Journal of The Academic Business World, Vol. 10, No. 2, pp.33–40.
Breuer, H. (2017) ‘A microgrid grows in Brooklyn’, Pictures of the Future Magazine [online]
https://www.siemens.com/innovation/en/home/pictures-of-the-future/energy-and-efficiency/
smart-grids-and-energy-storage-microgrid-in-brooklyn.html (accessed 12 March 2018).
Bridgers, A. (2017) ‘Will workplaces be going off the rails on the blockchain?’, Journal of Internet
Law, Vol. 20, No. 11, pp.3–6.
Browdie, B. (2012) BitPay Signs 1,000 Merchants to Accept Bitcoin Payments, American Banker,
11 September [online] https://www.americanbanker.com/news/bitpay-signs-1-000-merchants-
to-accept-bitcoin-payments (accessed 10 March 2018).
Buntinx, J.P. (2016) Number of Bitcoins ATMs Has More Than Doubled in Past 18 Months [online]
http://themerkle.com/number-of-bitcoin-atms-has-more-than-doubled-in-past-18-months/
(accessed 10 March 2018).
442
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
Burniske, C. (2015) Bitcoin: A Disruptive Currency, 1 August, Ark Invest [online] https://cdn2.
hubspot.net/hubfs/533155/1_Download_Files_ARK-Invest/White_Papers/Bitcoin-Disruptive-
Currency-ARKInvest.pdf (accessed 12 March 2018).
Chang, J. (2017) Blockchain: The Immutable Ledger of Transparency in Healthcare Technology,
23 August [online] https://medium.com/@sidebench/blockchain-the-immutable-ledger-of-
transparency-in-healthcare-technology-a4a64b1d5594 (accessed 10 March 2018).
Chen, Y. (2018) ‘Blockchain tokens and the potential democratization of entrepreneurship and
innovation’, Business Horizons, Vol. 61, No. 4, pp.567–575.
Cognizant Consulting (2017) How Blockchain Can Revitalize Manufacturing Value Chains
(Part 1), 24 January, Cognizant [online] https://www.cognizant.com/perspectives/how-
blockchain-can-revitalize-manufacturing-value-chains-part1 (accessed 15 March 2018).
Coyne, A. (2017) ‘Food giants Nestlè and Unilever link up with IBM on blockchain project’,
Aroq – Just-Food.Com (Global News), p.13.
Egorova, K. (2018) Blockchain Network Guarantees That There is Always a Smart Contract
Between Data Buyer and Sellers That Governs How Consumers’ Personal Information Will
Be Used, 4 April, Cointelegraph [online] https://cointelegraph.com/news/marketplace-aims-to-
resell-personal-data-and-create-passive-income-stream-for-users (accessed 10 March).
Finasko (2017) Blockchain Analysis – Applications of the Technology in Different Sectors,
14 February [online] https://finasko.com/t/blockchain-analysis-applications-of-the-technology-
in-different-sectors/135 (accessed 12 March 2018).
Groopman, J. (2017) Six Applications for Blockchain in Automotive, 10 September, Tractica
[online] https://www.tractica.com/artificial-intelligence/six-applications-for-blockchain-in-
automotive/ (accessed 14 March 2018).
Gupta, M. (2017) Blockchain for Dummies, John Wiley & Sons, New Jersey.
HSBC (2017) Rise of the Technophobe – Education Key to Tech Adoption, Says HSBC, 24 May
[online] http://www.hsbc.com/news-and-insight/media-resources/media-releases/2017/rise-of-
the-technophobe-education-key-to-tech-adoption-says-hsbc (accessed 12 March 2018).
IBM Institute for Business Value (2018) Team Medicine: How Life Sciences Can Win With
Blockchain, IBM Corporation [online] https://public.dhe.ibm.com/common/ssi/ecm/03/en/
03013903usen/team-medicine.pdf (accessed 12 March).
Kharpal, A. (2017) Bitcoin Value Rises Over $1 Billion as Japan, Russia Move to Legitimize
Cryptocurrency, 12 April, CNBC [online] https://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/12/bitcoin-price-
rises-japan-russia-regulation.html (accessed 12 March 2018).
Koonce, L. (2016) ‘The wild, distributed world: get ready for radical infrastructure changes, from
blockchains to the interplanetary file system to the internet of things’, Intellectual Property &
Technology Law Journal, Vol. 28, No. 10, pp.3–5.
Kyodo (2016) Japan OKs Recognizing Virtual Currencies as Similar to Real Money, The
Japan Times [online] https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/03/04/business/tech/japan-oks-
recognizing-virtual-currencies-similar-real-money/#.Wt_xT5dlCUl (accessed 12 March 2018).
Larios-Hernández, J.G. (2017) ‘Blockchain entrepreneurship opportunity in the practices of the
unbanked’, Business Horizons, Vol. 6, No. 11, pp.865–874.
Lee Kuo Chuen, D. (2015) Handbook of Digital Currency, 1st ed., Elsevier, 6th Floor, 360 Park
Ave, New York, NY, 10010 [online] http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:monogr:
9780128021170 (accessed 24 March 2018).
Linuma, A. (2017) Bitcoin: The Case for a $10,000 Coin, Forbes, 25 September [online]
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2017/09/25/bitcoin-the-case-for-a-10000-
coin/#7d4c07f23918 (accessed 12 March 2018).
Lorenz, J.T., Münstermann, B., Higginson, M., Olesen, P.B., Bohlken, N. and Ricciardi, V. (2016)
Blockchain in Insurance: Opportunity or Threat?, July [online] https://www.mckinsey.com/
~/media/McKinsey/Industries/Financial%20Services/Our%20Insights/Blockchain%20in%20i
nsurance%20opportunity%20or%20threat/Blockchain-in-insurance-opportunity-or-threat.ashx
(accessed 22 March 2018).
Blockchain-enabled technology 443
Macheel, T. (2014) BitGive Becomes First IRS Tax Exempt Bitcoin Charity, 25 August,
Coindesk [online] https://www.coindesk.com/bitgive-becomes-first-irs-tax-exempt-bitcoin-
charity/ (accessed 25 March 2018).
Matonis, J. (2012) Bitcoin Foundation Launches to Drive Bitcoin’s Advancement, Forbes, 27
September [online] https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonmatonis/2012/09/27/bitcoin-foundation-
launches-to-drive-bitcoins-advancement/#399de480d868 (accessed 12 April 2018).
McKinsey & Company (2017) ‘Blockchain technology in the insurance sector’, Quarterly
Meeting of the Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance (FACI), 11 January [online]
https://www.treasury.gov/initiatives/fio/Documents/McKinsey_FACI_Blockchain_in_Insuran
ce.pdf (accessed 12 April 2018).
Nakamoto, S. (2008) Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System [online] https://bitcoin.org/
bitcoin.pdf (accessed 28 March 2018).
O’Dwyer, K.J. and Malone, D. (2014) ‘Bitcoin mining and its energy footprint’, ISSC, CIICT,
Limerick, 26–27 June [online] http://karlodwyer.com/publications/pdf/bitcoin_KJOD_2014.
pdf (accessed 12 March 2018).
O’Leary, D.E. (2017) ‘Configuring blockchain architectures for transaction information in
blockchain consortiums: the case of accounting and supply chain systems’, Intelligent Systems
In Accounting, Finance & Management, Vol. 24, No. 4, pp.138–147.
Parker, L. (2017) McKinsey See Blockchain Technology Reaching Full Potential in 5 Years,
11 January [online] https://bravenewcoin.com/news/mckinsey-sees-blockchain-technology-
reaching-full-potential-in-5-years/ (accessed 12 April 2018).
Peterson, A. (2014) ‘Hal Finney received the first bitcoin transaction. Here’s how he describes
it’, The Washington Post [online] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/
wp/2014/01/03/hal-finney-received-the-first-bitcoin-transaction-heres-how-he-describes-it/
?noredirect=on&utm_term=.dbb62711457d (accessed 12 April 2018).
Rainey, R. (2011) Bitcoin – A Step Toward Censorship-Resistant Digital Currency, 20 January,
Electronic Frontier Foundation [online] https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2011/01/bitcoin-step-
toward-censorship-resistant (accessed 22 April 2018).
Redka (2018) [online] https://mlsdev.com/blog/the-future-of-the-blockchain-technology-use-cases-
geographical-expansion-potential-risks-and-challenges.
Rizzo, P. (2016) Dubai’s Global Blockchain Council Unveils First Pilot Projects, 30 May,
Coindesk [online] https://www.coindesk.com/global-blockchain-council-seven-pilots-dubai-
keynote/ (accessed 12 April 2018).
Rosic, A. (2018) What is Blockchain Technology? A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners [online]
https://blockgeeks.com/guides/what-is-blockchain-technology/ (accessed 22 April).
Rouse, M. (2010) Machine-2-Machine, June, TechTarget [online] https://internetofthingsagenda.
techtarget.com/definition/machine-to-machine-M2M (accessed 12 April 2018).
Rouse, M. (2018) Blockchain Economy, 16 April, TechTarget [online] https://whatis.techtarget.
com/definition/blockchain-economy?vgnextfmt=print (accessed 12 April).
Rovell, D. (2014) Sacramento Kings to Accept Bitcoin, 16 January, ESPN [online] http://www.
espn.com/nba/story/_/id/10303116/sacramento-kings-become-first-pro-sports-team-accept-
bitcoin (accessed 12 April 2018).
Sandner, P. (2017) Application of Blockchain Technology in the Manufacturing Industry,
18 November, Frankfurt School Blockchain Center [online] https://medium.com/
@philippsandner/application-of-blockchain-technology-in-the-manufacturing-industry-
d03a8ed3ba5e (accessed 12 April 2018).
Seidel, M.L. (2018) ‘Questioning centralized organizations in a time of distributed trust’, Journal
of Management Inquiry, Vol. 27, No. 1, pp.40–44.
Shermin, V. (2017) ‘Disrupting governance with blockchains and smart contracts’, Strategic
Change, Vol. 26, No. 5, pp.499–509.
444
M
. Attaran and A. Gunasekaran
Skelton, A. (2012) Pay Another Way: Bitcoin, 15 November, WordPress [online] https://en.blog.
wordpress.com/2012/11/15/pay-another-way-bitcoin/ (accessed 12 April 2018).
Somapa, S., Cools, M. and Dullaert, W. (2018) ‘Characterizing supply chain visibility – a literature
review’, The International Journal of Logistics Management, Vol. 29, No. 1, pp.308–339.
Subramanian, H. (2018) ‘Decentralized blockchain-based electronic marketplaces’,
Communications of The ACM, Vol. 61, No. 1, pp.78–84.
Tschorsch, F. and Scheuermann, F. (2016) ‘Bitcoin and beyond: a technical survey on
decentralized digital currencies’, IEEE Communications Surveys Tutorials, Vol. 18, No. 3,
pp.2084–2123.
Velasco-Castillo, E. (2016) Nine Blockchain Opportunities That Telecoms Operators
Should Explore, 13 June, Knowledge Center [online] http://www.analysysmason.com/
Research/Content/Comments/nine-blockchain-opportunities-Jun2016-RDMY0/
(accessed 12 April 2018).
Wallace, B. (2011) The Rise and Fall of Bitcoin, Wired Magazine, 23 November [online]
https://web.archive.org/web/20131031043919/http://www.wired.com:80/magazine/2011/11/m
f_bitcoin (accessed 12 April 2018).
Watson, L. and Mishler, C. (2017) ‘Get ready for blockchain’, Strategic Finance, pp.62–63.
Wibson (2018) Wibson Launches Consumer-Controlled Personal Data Marketplace,
24 February [online] https://medium.com/wibson/wibson-launches-consumer-controlled-
personal-data-marketplace-87b572a392bb (accessed 12 April).
Williams, B.D., Roh, J., Tokar, T. and Swink, M. (2013) ‘Leveraging supply chain visibility for
responsiveness: the moderating role of internal integration’, Journal of Operations
Management, Vol. 31, Nos. 7–8, pp.543–554.
World Economic Forum (WEF) (2016) The Future of Financial Infrastructure: An Ambitious Look
at How Blockchain Can Reshape Financial Services [online] http://www3.weforum.org/docs/
WEF_The_future_of_financial_infrastructure.pdf (accessed 22 April 2018).
Yerramsetti, S.K. (2017) Blockchain: Emerging Use Cases for Insurance, IBM [online]
https://www-01.ibm.com/common/ssi/cgi-bin/ssialias?htmlfid=IUW03053USEN
(accessed 12 May 2018).
Yuva, J.R. (2017) ‘Blockchain: next on food supply chain menu’, Food Logistics, Vol. 192,
pp.22–28.
Zheng, Z., Xie, S., Dai, H., Chen, X. and Wang, H. (2017) ‘An overview of blockchain technology:
architecture, consensus, and future trends’, IEEE 6th International Congress on Big Data,
[online] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318131748_An_Overview_of_Blockchain_
Technology_Architecture_Consensus_and_Future_Trends (accessed 10 July 2018).
