7 Blockchain breakthroughs...and why These Projects matter

What progress is happening with blockchain and cryptocurrency? 
 
Blockchain and cryptocurrency have been consistently growing toward the mainstream.  They have been slowed by technological immaturity, but there is plenty of evidence to show that this will not last for long. 
   
The more I have studied the cryptocurrency industry, the more I find one common theme.  People make snap decisions about whether cryptocurrenies are good based on their price alone.  Unfortunately, this leads people to miss the truth about the consistent progress which is quietly transforming our society. 

To be fair, blockchain is challenged with some well known hurdles which are hindering its ability to be mass adopted.  Concepts such as scaling, volatility, fees, and ease of use have dominated the news.  These challenges certainly do need to be solved, however it may not happen all at one time.  There are going to be many baby steps along the way that will help reveal solutions to these major challenges.  Here are 7 important breakthroughs that have happened recently...  

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What are the 7 breakthroughs?

• Regulations
• ​Stock Exchange
• Business & Retail
• Games
• Education
• ETF's & Mutual Funds
• Voting

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1)  Regulation and Taxes:

One of the most highly debated topics involving cryptocurrency is how much it should be regulated.  If there is to much regulation it will limit the ability for blockchain technology to grow.  On the other hand, no regulation at all leaves the average person exposed to fraud and scams.  Here are three import recent events showing progress: 

• Recently,  at the annual G20 meeting, there was a discussion about cryptocurrency. One of the major outcomes of this meeting was the agreement to create a global cryptocurrency tax which would be in place by 2020.  Having clear guidelines for how cryptocurrencies are taxed internationally would help pave the way for more stability in a token economy.   
  

 

• In addition, France, Italy, Spain, Malta, Cyprus, Portugal, and Greece have decided to join forces in an effort to help promote blockchain adoption in their countries.  The goal is to increase transparency in supply chains, education, transportation, land registries, customs, and healthcare.  In addition,  by adopting blockchain, these countries anticipate that administrative costs would decrease across these industries. 

• On a smaller level, Ohio recently declared that it will accept Bitcoin as payment for certain business taxes such as sales tax and employee withholding taxes.  This may influence other states who are currently considering whether or not to accept cryptocurrency as payments in their states. 

 
Why is This A Breakthrough?   These topics are a clear sign of maturity for blockchain and cryptocurrency.  All three of these examples validate that a transition is happening and that important regulatory decisions are being made which will help shape our future economy.      

2) Stock Exchange: 

The Swiss Stock, Nasdaq, and German Stock Exchange have either begun trading cryptocurrencies or have plans to use blockchain for their own infrastructure.  Here are three important advancements:

• Swiss Stock Exchange is the largest stock exchange in Switzerland.  They began accepting trades for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, and several others in 2018.

  

• Nasdaq is the 2nd largest stock exchange in the world and it is planning on allowing Bitcoin futures to be processed sometime early in Q1 of  2019.  One of the major benefits would be that institutional investors would be able to participate more readily in Bitcoin.

• German Stock Exchange (Boerse Stuttgart Group) is the 2nd largest stock exchange in Germany and will begin allowing cryptocurrency to be exchanged sometime in Q1 of 2019.  This will be open for both private and institutional investors, and is being designed to be a hybrid fiat and cryptocurrency exchange. 

Why Is This A Breakthrough?  These three stock exchanges wouldn't spend the time or money developing this sector if they didn't see long term potential.  In addition to adding a sense of legitimacy, financial markets are among the most heavily regulated and would therefore help be a stepping stone into mainstream adoption.    

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3) Business & Retail:

Businesses such as British Petroleum (BP), Shell, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), and Overstock.com are all adopting and using blockchain in their business.

• BP and Shell have been testing a blockchain oil trading platform, known as VAKT, and it is scheduled to be available to the public in Q1 of 2019.  Blockchain will be used to streamline the trading process and lower paper waste.   

• Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is the seventh largest oil reserve in the world and it is teaming up with IBM to adopt blockchain into its supply chains.  Blockchain will be used to track oil from the well to end user in an effort to increase efficiency and operating costs in its supply chain. 

 

• Overstock.com has been involved with, and has accepted, cryptocurrency since 2014.  The company has recently expanded its reach into 19 other blockchain services and continues to be bullish on the future of blockchain. 

Why is This A Breakthrough?   
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Business provides the connection point for transactions between business and consumers.  The true value of cryptocurrency is found in the real world problems that the underlying technology helps to solve.  Companies who use blockchain for real world use cases move the needle from a person being a cryptocurrency speculators to a person being an actual consumer.  Companies like the the ones above are helping to pave the way for wider adoption of blockchain in the business and consumer world.  

4) Education:

Coding, Crytography, and Blockchain Development are part of the fastest growing job sector, and employers are paying top dollar for people with these skills.  Many major universities have quickly developed blockchain and cryptocurrency programs to help meet this heightened demand.  In addition, many other private blockchain training, or cryptocurrency programs, have quickly gained popularity to help meet the need these companies are desperately searching for.   
 
Consider a few statistics...

• Demand for coding / cryptography skills increased by over 200% in 2017.  (According to Indeed.com)
• Glassdoor reported over 300% growth in "Blockchain Developer" jobs in 2018.
• Linked In reported 33 times growth in "Blockchain Developer" jobs in 2018 over 2017.
• Google Trends still shows high search volume for "blockchain" despite a major drop in crypto prices.     
• Billions of dollars are being invested in technical blockchain and cryptocurrency education. 

Why Is This a Breakthrough?  
Higher levels of education lead to higher levels of implementation.  Overall, Blockchain and cryptocurrency are still immature in their development.  As more people are educated and trained with these skills, the end results of using blockchain technology will only get better.  

Also Read: "Should I Consider A Job In Blockchain" 

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5)  ETF / Mutual Funds / IRA's: 

• Swiss Stock Exchange is Switzerlands #1 stock exchange, and it also became the first exchange company in the world to offer Exchange Trade Products (ETP's) for cryptocurrencies.  This may help provide a road map for other countries as they begin to adopt Exchange Trade Funds (ETF's).
  

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• Calastone Investment Network is a large mutual fund company that has decided to move their entire settlement systems onto the blockchain.  This is expected to decrease paper waste, increase efficiency, and streamline the companies effort.  A successful transition would prove the value and efficiency of blockchain to other companies.    

 

• Companies like Regal Assets began offering cryptocurrency IRA's in late 2017.  They were the first company in the industry to to receive a cryptocommodity trading license and we are also one of the first to offer all the major cryptos as part of a retirement account.  This opened up a brand new asset class for people to diversify their retirement portfolios.

Why is this a Breakthrough?  Many people feel that the creation of a Bitcoin ETF would be a major step into the advancement of cryptocurrency.  Currently, it is difficult for large hedge funds to easily move their money in and out of cryptocurrency.  Creating a Bitcoin or cryptocurrency ETF would allow large institutional investors to easily enter into this market.         
  

6) Blockchain Games / Dapps:  

Before you laugh at this...consider that gaming is a $95 billion industry!   

• In traditional games, millions of dollars are spent buying, selling, and trading items which help the player make progress in the game.  Once the player spends money, it is gone, and they leave empty handed with no true value to show for it. 

• Blockchain games allow the player create their own game items and then turn around and sell them in exchange for cryptocurrency.  This transaction is secured on the blockchain, and the creator now owns an item with intellectual property which has value.  Using a blockchain, creates an opportunity for the gamer to help build the game and be compensated for their effort.  In addition, some of their items may be able to be transferred and sold in other games allowing for a type of cross pollination in gaming. 

• When the internet was first developing, one of the main ways that it gained adoption was through gaming.  Gamers have been exchanging virtual money with each other for years and are already comfortable with it.  This makes for an easy transition into cryptocurrency. 
  

  
Why Is This A Breakthrough?
  
Gaming is its own micro economy. It is a simple medium of exchange to use and because gamers are familiar with digital money already there is a low barrier to entry into cryptocurrency.  Also, games provide a test environment that can be tweaked and improved without life altering consequences.  Many lessons are being learned from gaming that are then able to be applied into traditional business transactions.   

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7)  Voting:

South Korea has been trial testing the ability to vote through a blockchain platform and they have now declared their intentions to use a blockchain voting system in their country.  This would be the first decentralized voting system, and would provide increased transparency by eliminating the possibility of double voting.          

Why Is This A Breakthrough?
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Voting is only a good thing if you can trust the underlying system.  Blockchain voting has the potential to increase trust by providing a system that is secure, cannot be altered and is transparent.  Votes would not be able to be lost, destroyed, manipulated or counted twice.  If South Korea succeeds in their blockchain voting effort, they may very well be introducing the world to a higher level of trust in the democratic voting process.        

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