Blockchain Is Now A Crucial Technology - And Executives Know It

The blockchain hype experienced from around 2015, reaching its peak in 2017, has subsided greatly.

Harsh realities are coming into play. Blockchain platforms and dApps
now have to deliver on the glamorous promises made via their
whitepapers. Many are closing shop as they realize the common mistake of
putting the cart before the horse.

Research carried out in the corporate world reveals the receptive nature of enterprises towards technology. Moreover, some studies even show that executives within the corporate world believe that distributed ledger technology is the next frontier for business.

PwC carried out a survey which revealed the perception of executives globally towards blockchain technology.

Results of the survey conducted by PwC. 84% of the respondents are already involved with blockchain technology | Source: PwC

The PwC report sampled executives within corporations that report annual revenue of over $1 billion per year. Furthermore, considering their annual revenue, the respondents likely represent market leaders in their respective industries.

Thus, the PwC report shows that the future is indeed blockchain technology.

Deloitte also conducted their assessment of the status of blockchain in the corporate world. Their sample size comprised of almost 1,400 hundred executives in the corporate world with their respective companies registering annual revenue of over $100 million.

Their results show a growing trend in terms of belief in blockchain technology and adoption. It reveals an increasing acceptance of the technology by more enterprises.

The above results show the growing belief in blockchain | Source: Deloitte

Deloitte’s results not only show the increasing acceptance of the DLT but also show confidence in the practical application of the technology by the executives.

“Enterprise blockchain technology is just that, a technology. Its value is in what it enables, and we are just scratching the surface on the development and the deployment front. Anyone looking at it through a boom or bust filter is missing the long-term value of strategic technology.” Marta Piekarska-Geater, Director of Ecosystem at Hyperledger, explained in one of her interviews with Cointelegraph.

She echoed her sober sentiments on the technology. Blockchain can only work when applied practically and thoughtfully.

Most of the failed dApps and platforms that launched during the 2017 blockchain hype failed as a result of impractical adoption. Some applications were creating problems which they would then solve through their platforms.

Survey results on industries with the most developed blockchain technology | Source: PwC

The results by PwC show the level of blockchain development in particular industries. The results reveal the extent of influence blockchain has on these industries.

Unsurprisingly, the financial industry leads with 46% of executives believing that it is the most advanced in blockchain. Considering the nature of blockchain, it was highly likely that financial services would have been selected as the most advanced.

Financial services globally are satisfactory, but there is still a lot that can be done. Blockchain offers this opportunity; thus, its adoption is higher in the financial service sector.

Source: Medium/Mappo

The image above shows results based on research carried out by Aelf. The results differ from those of PwC in the adoption-leading industry.

According to Aelf, the transport and logistics industry leads in blockchain adoption, followed by the financial service sector. The differing results may have been as a result of the sample selected. However, they both represent the potential of blockchain technology in these industries.

Previously seen as a technology for the financial sector, these statistics reveal that blockchain’s adoption can virtually be done in any industry as long as the adoption is practical.

On blockchain adoption, Erik Voorhees of Shapeshift said in an interview with Cointelegraph, “Blockchains are useful for many types of use cases; basically wherever there is value in decentralizing trust and creating immutable records that no specific person or entity can alter.” He goes on to mention several industries that can be influenced positively by blockchain, which include the gambling and health industry.

Countries which are viewed as leading blockchain nations | Source: PwC

In terms of countries leading in blockchain adoption and development, the United States and China are perceived as the global leaders of the technology. That is likely to remain the case in the coming years as these two global superpowers are ahead of everyone in terms of blockchain development and adoption.

The survey by PwC and Deloitte revealed other noteworthy results. These include:

Interoperability of blockchain technology is key to its success.Trust issues could delay adoption of the technology, which is counter-intuitive given that the technology is designed to operate in a trustless manner.Companies offering business to business (B2B) services are also considering blockchain adoption to meet the demands of the evolving business environment.Regulatory uncertainty is a significant barrier to blockchain development.The Future of Enterprises

Based on the various results analyzed in this article, it is clear that blockchain adoption is part of the future of enterprises.

Blockchain use cases are numerous with the potential of significantly improving the operations in industries it is applied in.

The fundamental of blockchain technology will continue to evolve and grow stronger day-by-day. Simultaneously the faith and confidence people will have in it ability to maximize productivity and use-cases will also improve. As long the progression continues in its natural curve, the executives who once dismissed blockchain, will lead the line to implement it.