The world of the blockchain is an extraordinary one because it projects you into the future, revolutionising the business models and reference points to which we have been accustomed, but before doing so, encouraging you to have a peek into the past. This is something that must be done, otherwise we cannot understand the potential of blockchain. It is a way of gaining sensitivity to what is happening ̶ an opportunity to acquire awareness. And then we automatically plunge back into the past, with no brakes. Technology takes a step back while important topics emerge, which need some examination because they represent our everyday reality: the creation of currency, the role of central banks in the market and the effects of monetary policy on our daily lives as citizens. This path creates a juxtaposition that puts everything into question. It is as if we were at the beginning of an epochal change; to put it into context, I could say that it is the same as when we switched from horses to cars as a means of transport.
The business model was to be changed forever, with no going back: fuel, paved roads, motorways and refueling areas have opened doors to new opportunities. In fact, the horse as a means of transport has not vanished but has given way to a more evolved method. Here we can speak of the convergence of businesses or organisations. Distances have been reduced and along with this, our habits and our way of life have changed. Legal tender (fiat money) will not disappear but, in a context like the current one, there are margins for the spread of a global currency, the Internet of Money. This is born as an alternative to our monetary system, based on loans, an inflationary system; born as a bottom-up model instead of top-down, close to citizen’s needs.
The Internet, Mobiles, Social Networks… convergence with Blockchain
The Internet, social networking and mobile phones have completely changed the paradigms and our lifestyle. Blockchain will be the next trend with which we will have to reckon, in cryptocurrency!
The most innovative technologies, artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics, as well as 3D printing will find a point of convergence with Blockchain, both technological and organisational, in a public peer-to-peer context. Every “thing” will be connected in an extended context: motorised vehicles, mobile phones, people, energy meters, businesses, robots – any object will live as an entity within a peer-to-peer public network. In this dimension there will be opportunities for the transformation and innovation of business processes.
Let us try to think about the opportunities for optimising banking processes, such as data bank reconciliation or letters of credit; or supply-chain processes, with a return in terms of transparency, traceability and sustainability. Smart metering that puts in place direct connections, without intermediaries, between those who produce and those who provide energy. These are just a few examples of the various scenarios, of which there is a long list. Of interest and value is the ability to implant intelligent logic into the network, with Smart Contracts.
