Even private and permissioned blockchains need to build ecosystems and achieve network effects, just like their permissionless, public counterparts.
At least, that’s the thinking behind LedgerConnect, a financial blockchain “app store” that aims to make it easier for banks to access distributed ledger technology (DLT) solutions from fintech and software providers, and for those vendors in turn to reach bank customers.
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Blockchain has finally gotten over the Wall Street hump. Now that BitCoin and Ethereum are essentially old news, the actual technology behind these commodities is beginning to trickle into real-world enterprise applications. Blockchain, it seems, has many useful use cases out there in the business world, and with the help of the Linux Foundation and IBM, enterprises can now take advantage of the open source Hyperledger implementation of blockchain technology.
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Japan-based tech conglomerate Hitachi and telecommunication giant KDDI are testing a blockchain-based system that can settle retail payments validated using shoppers’ fingerprints.
According to a release on Wednesday, a group of staff from the two partners are this week experimenting with a coupon settlement system deployed in a KDDI store in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district, as well as a local donut shop.
Built by Hitachi with technology from the Hyperledger Fabric platform, the blockchain system is integrated with Hitachi’s biometric verification and KDDI’s existing coupon system. It seeks to settle shoppers’ coupon transactions over a distributed network using their fingerprints as validators.
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Google is joining the list of tech giants to deploy blockchain technology to offer customers fintech and cloud service solutions, according to an official statement Monday, July 23.
Google announced that the company has partnered with two blockchain-focused firms, Digital Asset and BlockApps, to offer new distributed ledger technology (DLT) solutions on Google’s Cloud Platform (GCP), which would allow users to “explore ways [customers] might use distributed ledger technology frameworks.”
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The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston cares about the future of blockchain, and here’s why.
In the 1990s, the Boston Fed employed over 400 people just to cash paper checks. “Today all those jobs are gone,” said Paul Brassil, the bank’s vice president of information technology and head of IT innovation strategy.
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Under examination is MyClinic.com, a telemedicine application powered by Medicalchain, a blockchain platform that enables the secure exchange of medical records between patients and doctors.
Medicalchain is built on Hyperledger Fabric, an open source blockchain framework. “We decided to go down this route because healthcare is complicated as it is,” said Mo Tayeb, Medicalchain co-founder and COO. “If we tried to build a blockchain from scratch, and tried to integrate with healthcare companies, it’s quite a lot of work.”
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There has been more talk in recent years about how blockchain technology can change the world than actual projects showing what it can do.
But now, after years of research and development, companies are using blockchain networks to conduct trade finance, track diamonds and prove the provenance of marijuana.
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Oracle wants in on the blockchain-as-a-service game, too.
The company on Monday announced the availability of a fully-managed blockchain service over which businesses can automate processes over an immutable electronic ledger, such as tracking goods in a supply chain or handling customer financial transactions.
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Blockchain is the underlying technology behind cryptocurrency. Simply put, Blockchain is a decentralized, distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way.
While this was invented for Bitcoin, the Blockchain technology has unreleased a torrent of new applications in industries like healthcare, music, auto, and AI.
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If you’re soliciting support for an early blockchain pilot test or project in your organization, you’ll need to explain both the underlying technology and how it can help the business.
That’s true for any emerging technology, but this pair of tasks could be particularly tricky for IT leaders who want do a blockchain project. For starters, blockchain is tough to explain and understand, especially for non-technical people. Moreover, the hype surrounding Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies tends to create some misconceptions about the fundamental blockchain tech behind those digital currencies.
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