Blockchain technology — an incomplete list of use cases
Since blockchain technology burst on to the scene and in to CIO’s agendas a couple of years ago, technologists and business professionals have been working hard to investigate how this revolutionary technology can be applied. The number of use cases is growing fast and rightly so since the technology behind BCT is very versatile and and is based upon promoting the following benefits:
1. Greater transparency
2. Enhanced security
3. Improved traceability
4. Increased efficiency and speed
5. Reduced costs
Blockchain
Satoshi Nakamoto launched Bitcoin in 2009, and since then blockchain technology has been a major buzzword and has enjoyed considerable hype. After blockchain’s use in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, the next major milestone was Ethereum, which combined blockchain with another programming language to deploy smart contracts without the need for a central authority.
Applications of Blockchain
Since its inception, many broader applications of blockchain — or more accurately, distributed ledger technology (DLT) — have blossomed and the breadth of possibilities seems almost endless.
As Scott Riley, director of Block Asset Technologies, points out ledger is a noun not a verb: DLT itself is only a kind of database; it is only its applications that are groundbreaking today. This article will explore several of the most exciting applications of DLT.
Cloud
The cloud is itself an exciting, new domain and DLT promises to advance the cloud’s potential to become decentralised . One writer estimates that in 3–5 years DLT will be a major disruptor in the cloud. Companies like storj and sia are currently working on this idea, and storj estimates that using DLT could cut costs by 80%. Further than that, the benefits are that storage would be uncensored, decentralised, and fully encrypted.
Finance
Blockchain started with cryptocurrencies and then the finance sector was the first to adopt and implement blockchain, but there is still much that it has to offer the sector. Bitcoin itself continues to excite with soaring value. Elsewhere, above all in payments and clearing and settlement, DLT promises to make the sector faster, more efficient, more secure, and easier. This can be seen for example in capital markets where projects like Clearmatics and Project Jasper in Canada have represented strides forward in DLT.
Blockchain has even reached mainstream banking: Santander released a blockchain-based banking app in 2015, becoming the first UK bank to use blockchain in international payments. It started as a staff pilot and will one day be implemented more broadly, which demonstrates blockchain’s progress in this sector.

Contracts
Projects like Rootstock implement smart contracts in relation to Bitcoin and can deploy them automatically, thus removing the need for a legal intermediary. Ethereum is the giant of contracts that uses DLT and another scripting language to deploy almost any kind of contract. These contracts can contain almost any content from wills to car rentals but are most used within finance. This is the most exciting application of DLT for Christoph Langewisch (a blockchain and ICO advisor and lead).
One ambitious idea relating to contracts in insurance and blockchain’s intersection with the IoT is to have smart sensors on, for example, cars, these will alert an insurance company whenever there is a crash and convey all the relevant information through the blockchain.
Supply Chain
The supply chain and shipping are enormous industries with equally enormous amounts of antiquated paperwork and bureaucracy. This costs a great deal, introduces room for human error, and makes processes less efficient. Using DLT in the supply chain, as do Provenance and Skuchain, will make secure logs of provenance and progress of goods faster, more efficient, and better protected against cyber-threats. This could also intersect with the IoT with sensors on containers and cargo, thus automating the tracking process further.
Moreover, it will save lots of money: up to one trillion dollars according to one writer! In a recently announced partnership between IBM and Maersk to create a similar system, IBM estimated the savings to be one fifth of the actual transportation costs. Moving towards smarter shipping will save considerable sums of money. A recent survey revealed 87% of supply chain companies intend to use this technology by 2020.
In addition, this will allow for quick verification of an item’s provenance and genuine origins, which is the most exciting application for Gary Spence (CEO of DLT company Yotta Laboratories), above all in food and pharmaceuticals.
Healthcare
In healthcare, too, there is a huge amount of bureaucracy above all with medical records. Distribution of medical records to different healthcare providers, patients, and — in certain countries — insurance companies is a cumbersome process that can be made easier and more secure by DLT. The only limitation of DLT to overcome in healthcare is its inherent transparency in relation to confidential information.
This has been put into practice by Gem, and isolve is using DLT for drug supply chains. Estonia and Dubai are both experimenting with implementing a blockchain-based system for healthcare in order to create better interconnectedness and cybersecurity.
Humanitarian
DLT is even being used by non-profit organisations: the UN World Food Programme is using it in cash-based transfers and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is employing the technology to help people who lack bank accounts.
Identity
Further than bank accounts, some developers have created blockchained passports. Using DLT for identity has also been adopted by Onename, storing hashed personal details on the blockchain securely.
This has been best implemented by, for example, Coinfirm who have created KYC/AML services. This saves on huge amounts of paperwork in a quick and easy application that securely contain relevant identity documents.
Social
Similarly to identity, there are some social applications of DLT. It has been used for a messaging platform like Gems, which proposes to be a social communication platform based on Bitcoin. Steemit is a full social media platform based on its cryptocurrency Steem with which one is awarded for creating and sharing content.
More practically, La’Zooz is a DLT-based app for carpooling. Zooz is mined either by purchase or providing lifts and is used up by getting lifts. This efficient, money-saving system promotes social interactions as well as a more environmental way to get around — especially at a time when Uber’s status in the UK is threatened.
Music
There is even potential within the complex legal situation surrounding digital music sales and downloads for blockchain to thrive. Potentiam incorporates smart contracts to distribute money from music downloads automatically. Similarly, a recent partnership was struck between PRS, ASCAP, and SACEM with IBM to manage music copyright and sales using blockchain technology. This would be a more efficient, automatic with less room for human error, and more secure system.
Government
Large-scale, there are several governmental applications of DLT that are very exciting. First of all, it is being used in the previously laborious and paper-based sector of land registry. This move toward security and efficiency is being adopted by Sweden already and both Georgia and Honduras intend to implement it too.
One level up from that, it is being used in currency and voting. Tunisia and Senegal have both introduced digital national currency on blockchains and Japan now officially accepts Bitcoin as legal tender. These have all the benefits of cryptocurrency — speed, security, immutability, efficiency etc. — but on a large-scale, widely-adopted platform.
DLT has also been used in voting: Estonia’s 2014 municipal elections and Denmark’s Liberal Alliance’s 2014 elections for example. Moreover, one capability of Bitcongress is digital voting. Voting through DLT is not only fast but promises to be very secure and can assuage public fears around security and digital voting.
On the largest scale, blockchain is being used nationally. Dubai intends to become a blockchain city; Estonia, or rather e-Estonia, has become a “blockchain nation” (President Ilves in 2016) where all official documents are on its blockchain and e-Residency is offered; and there is even a Bitnation, which is an entirely digital nation fabricated on Bitcoin and blockchaining its documents to create a worldwide citizenship of a blockchain nation.
… And everything else?
It seems there is no end to blockchain’s reach. Scott Riley describes DLT applications as “limitless”. There have been proposals for applications for everything from gun-tracking to recruitment to the gold trade to stocks gambling.
Can blockchain be used to do anything? What limitations exist?
Firstly, it is a nascent, young technology. It still requires a lot of work and setting up applications is laborious. This means it is currently a very costly technology to utilise. Moreover, it being young means adoption is a problem: it requires widespread adoption which is difficult at such an early stage of its lifetime. Being young also means its scalability will be difficult, the primary difficulty according to Christoph Langewisch.
Also, DLT’s applications have uncertain regulatory status. Being young, how it is legally regulated, above all in finance, is still without consensus and this could be a delaying limitation in its large-scale adoption. There are ways forward, however: for example Japan’s regulation around its adoption of Bitcoin as a national currency has been a basis for Russia’s use of blockchain in state administration. Similarly, without a central authority it is unclear how to manage dispute resolution.
Latency is still a problem too: Bitcoin for example still only writes a new block every 10 or so minutes and under large-scale adoption above all in finance this could be a limitation. At the same time, however, its energy consumption is drastically high. Bitcoin consumes as much power and electricity as all of Ireland! Making both speed and energy consumption more efficient will be very important to blockchain’s future.
There are limitations to blockchain’s enormous scope, but these will surely be hurdles that developers will eventually overcome. The powerful future blockchain promises has a huge range of potential applications and we will see its influence grow and grow.
