Blockchain as a service: Newer possibilities for SMEs

Yogesh Rawal
Akeo
Published in
3 min readJun 30, 2020
Blockchain as a service (BaaS): Opening new possibilities for SMEs

According to a recent report by Fortune Business Insights, “The global blockchain as a service market is set to reach $24.94 B by 2027, with a CAGR of 39.5 per cent. Multiple advantages of BaaS for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) will fuel market growth.”

The real-world use cases of blockchain are expanding at a fast pace. Businesses globally are looking for blockchain-based solutions in various sectors including, supply chains, healthcare, finance, real-time payments and more. With the growing demand, numerous benefits of blockchain have come to light and blockchain as a service (BaaS) solutions are becoming increasingly popular.

Blockchain as a Service model allows SMEs to explore distributed ledgers, DApps, and smart contracts without needing to host the network. With BaaS, they can take advantage of improved security, better transparency, faster value transfer and other advantages the technology has to offer.

Before moving further, lets first understand -

What is Blockchain as a Service (BaaS)?

To provide blockchain-based solutions to a broader range of customers, blockchain technology is being offered in the cloud as a service model. This business model of delivering blockchain services is more or less similar to Software as a Service (SaaS), Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and more. Several companies have adopted this model to offer cloud-based solutions and storage.

BaaS model enables organizations of all types and sizes to leverage blockchain-based solutions without bearing the development cost. Thus, businesses can build products and services based on blockchain quickly and effectively.

Read more in our blog — Blockchain as a Service: An Introduction

Blockchain as a Service benefits for SMEs

BaaS shares a common ground with SaaS, when it comes to benefits offered and how these business models operate. Enterprises willing to leverage blockchain can find various advantages of partnering a BaaS company.

Quicker to deploy

One of the main advantages of blockchain as a service model is that they already have a ready infrastructure in place. Necessary codes and modules are already built. All the customers need to do is to customize the solution based on the requirement.

Less expensive

Eliminating the need for hiring blockchain developers and acquiring the infrastructure, BaaS offers an opportunity to build solutions quickly and at a minimal cost. This comes as a boon to small businesses who have a lack of proper investment.

No need to start from scratch

Companies offering blockchain as a service do not need to start everything from scratch and can start development without needing to build basic modules and systems.

High levels of customization

While businesses can enjoy pre-built platforms, they also have the ability to customize the solution based on their needs. They provide enough flexibility to enable SMEs to build personalized solutions. It can help them to penetrate the market and quickly gain market share.

Issues with BaaS

BaaS offers certain advantages to small and medium-sized businesses. However, there are certain shortcomings which a business might face when opting for as a service model. Here are some of the issues BaaS companies need to focus on –

1. Installation process may take time as it highly depends on the technology provider.

2. Fixing issues and managing operations may get delayed.

3. Scaling issues.

Key takeaways

Blockchain as a service simplifies the blockchain adoption for small and medium-sized businesses. It can be a game-changer for organizations looking to embrace blockchain technology and want to start quickly. While there are certain issues to meet, the model promises various opportunities that can open up newer possibilities for SMEs to move forward.

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Yogesh Rawal
Akeo
Editor for

Working as a content writer for more than 6 years. Based in Rajasthan (India).