Along with the advent of the internet, we have witnessed many waves of life-altering technologies emerge as a cycle every few years. We have witnessed mobile storage and communication devices that can fit into our pockets. We use mobile apps that help us stay connected to the world and process transactions, like making a payment or ordering food, in a jiffy which would otherwise require going to a place and standing in a line and filing forms. We have glimpsed the whole world buzzing right on the small screens of our mobile phones or maybe on the medium-sized ones of our laptops.
With all these changes reconstructing our lives every day, every hour, every second, we have seen one more thing, probably the most crucial entity in our lives in these times, evolve through many phases, handled across different platforms and in many different forms; Money!
The History of Money:
In times when money, or a currency, was yet to be invented, barter system prevailed. It’s inconsistency led to the use of metal objects being designated value and trade started depending upon it. As all things with enough application eventually metamorphose, so did money with the use of first metal coins. With the invention of paper, money transposed to the paper form. These were promissory notes that showed the potential to be developed into a more easily acceptable form. Global trade and commerce have changed ever since.
The Digital Evolvement:
The emergence of credit cards, EMI option on eCommerce websites and digital wallets led to another paradigm shift in the usage of money. With governments promoting cashless economies, digital transactions not only brought ease of doing things but also digital security in processing these transactions.
The most significant change, however, that money has been through is the dawn of Bitcoin, the first decentralized cryptocurrency. Invented by a person or group unknown, bitcoin has started to grow as a method of financial transaction and has paved the way to the emergence of many other cryptocurrencies worldwide. However, what is interesting is the working technology behind a cryptocurrency, which is Blockchain. Blockchain is a public distributed ledger which has records of transactions that are verified by network nodes through cryptography. In simple terms, it is a digital book of accounts which has an entry from multiple sources and is very difficult to falsify.
Day by day, the popularity of blockchain is increasing with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are the primary reason. Like bank accounts, lockers, financials schemes, and e-wallets are used to store your money; cryptocurrency wallets have surfaced for storing your decentralized currency. Since a cryptocurrency is of very high value and needs to be secured, you need cryptocurrency wallet development companies that can devise secure digital lockers for your digitized fortunes.
But is the Use of Blockchain Limited Only to Generating and Maintaining Records of a Cryptocurrency?
The central unit of a blockchain is a block which contains transactional data along with a timestamp when the transaction occurred. Hence, a block can store any digital data we would like to have recorded. Since each block is verified through different nodes present globally, it is hard to alter a particular block or the chain itself, and that is the cause of it’s growing popularity. A blockchain provides an application to potentially any process that requires storing a certain amount of data which in the digital world is almost everything.
Let Us Explore a Few Scenarios Where Implementing a Blockchain Would Prove to Be a Game-Changer:
We have often witnessed or heard of incidents wherein a deal wasn’t honored as it should have even though a contract was laid out. If blockchain technology is implemented to maintain such contracts, it eradicates the occurrence of such incidences to a great extent. A blockchain contract, or a smart contract, not only has control directly over the digital currency or an asset, but it can also execute specific operations based on the pre-defined rules set within the contract.
Blockchain Internet-of-Things (IoT):
With IoT solutions connecting your everyday devices to an online network, there is a potential risk of what and how much access is granted to an external source. The blockchain ledger system working on it’s set of rules analyzes any party requesting access to a piece of particular information or system and having verified, allows unique access to the trusted party only. Encrypting your smart appliances with blockchain imparts transferability but also safeguards ownership.
The music industry is based upon quality artists to function but managed like every other financial institution. Right from production to distribution rights, profit sharing to royalty earnings, many factors affect the monetary aspects in the music industry. Implementing blockchain in the music industry would not only bring transparency to the whole system but would also assist in the proper and real-time distribution of profits amongst stakeholders. Involved parties can get paid via digital currency based upon the terms agreed to.
Having reviewed the above areas, one can deduce that blockchain has limitless applications and would probably be right to an extent. However, we need to ensure that we have the right developing partner for the area we need to explore and require solutions. Blockchain technology companies with the right approach and inventiveness can help with the most befitting solutions for you. If you have been browsing through the internet and have not found the right fit or tools to gauge on, you need not worry. Check out all the reliable developers rated on quality and ability on GoodFirms so that you are on the right track with your ideas.
Blockchain: ‘How It Changed Money’ and the World Beyond Cryptocurrencies was originally published in Data Driven Investor on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.