FINTECH: Businesses move beyond early learning stage of blockchain

FINTECH: Businesses move beyond early learning stage of blockchain
The GBBC, in partnership with the Greater Omaha Chamber, organized the “New Kids on the Blockchain” event in Omaha, Nebraska. / Photo by CC
By Nicholas Watson in Prague June 22, 2017

Businesses in the US appear to be moving beyond merely learning about blockchain – a distributed ledger first developed to record bitcoin transactions but now regarded as having uses far beyond that – and are now increasingly interested in piloting projects using the technology, according to the Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC), which in May hosted an event on the sidelines of the Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholder meeting.

Educating business about the opportunities and innovations surrounding blockchain is a main goal of the newly created GBBC, which in partnership with the Greater Omaha Chamber organized the “New Kids on the Blockchain” event in Omaha, Nebraska.

The two-day event began on May 4 with a gathering of senior executives from a variety of major companies headquartered in Omaha, such as Union Pacific, Mutual of Omaha and proxibid, to give an overview of blockchain technology and to hash out potential case uses for it.

This was followed by a larger event the next day that featured presentations and panels from industry players such as CME Group, IBM, EY and The Bitfury Group, a global full-service blockchain technology company, to a wider audience of company representatives numbering around 170. “It was standing room only,” says Mercina Tillemann-Dick, executive director of the GBBC, adding that her organization had originally expected around 100 to attend.

“It was a special opportunity to be in the same room with all these major companies. Connecting blockchain experts and technologists with companies that are aware of blockchain, but don’t yet know how the technology works or how it might impact their companies is exactly why we formed the GBBC,” says Mercina Tillemann-Dick.

The companies that attended came from a variety of sectors – freight, manufacturing, agriculture, financial services, insurance – suggesting the opportunities to apply blockchain technology will be widely spread across the economy.

The applications for blockchain are believed to be manifold and growing. The technology offers a way for people who do not know or trust each other to transfer nearly any asset using the same process, creating a record of ownership that compels the consent of everyone concerned. Given that no central authority or potentially malicious third party can tamper with it, everything from land registries, to stock markets, to financial services, to even airport security could use this technology to hold sensitive data, limit fraud and corruption, improve efficiency and maximise economic benefits to a broader section of society.

Since its launch in January during the Annual World Economic Forum Meeting in Davos, the GBBC has held a number of meetings around the world in places such as China as it expands to take in 39 members representing 30 countries so far. But what marked out the council’s first blockchain event in Omaha was the number of companies that showed interest in actually piloting blockchain projects, rather than just learning about the technology.

“This was very encouraging to us – by the end of our events and conversations in Omaha, companies were talking about piloting projects” says Tillemann-Dick. “There was a huge emphasis on actually testing the technology, which was an exciting development. We usually engage with companies that are eager to learn more, but this was different.”

Indeed, this reluctance to enter the practical realm is something that sceptics of blockchain often point to, that it is still too early days to say whether the technology will be as revolutionary as its supporters claim and there will undoubtedly be growing pains before we see its use in everyday life.

However, Tillemann-Dick says the event gave an inkling into how unexpectedly and widely companies see its potential use. “In agriculture and supply chain, we see so many applications for the technology. The companies we met in Omaha were really innovative in their view of how blockchain might be applied,” she says.

Also, for those who raise their eyebrows at seeing such a revolutionary technology being touted in the Midwest, Tillemann-Dick believes there’s no reason this part of America can’t be the jumping-off point for blockchain. “There’s no reason this technology has to be based in Silicon Valley or Shanghai. We’re seeing unconventional places like Omaha embrace blockchain – and these pioneers will likely have a competitive edge moving forward.”

 

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