The Blockchain Effect: Exploring the Industries that Blockchain Technology will Disrupt

The terms blockchain technology and cryptocurrency are often intertwined. But what we don’t realize is the fact that blockchain technology is far beyond just digital currencies. The disruptive power of this ever-evolving technology holds no boundaries, as almost every other industry around the world has incorporated it in businesses. Let’s take a look at some of the prominent industries that blockchain technology will disrupt in the near-future.

Blockchain helps businesses with an abundance of benefits, allowing them to stay competitive in the digital world.
Decentralization, transparency, immutability, and automation are the fundamental traits of blockchain technology, which can be implemented in various industries.
The blockchain has been compared to the internet’s impact on the media industry, with the potential to grant billions of people worldwide access to financial services.
Blockchain technology has the potential to provide an adequate means for hospitals to store data, including medical records, and share them with authorized personnel or patients.
By adopting blockchain-based systems, it is now possible to considerably streamline bureaucracy while enhancing the security, efficiency, and transparency of government operations.

A Look into The Basics

But first, what exactly is blockchain technology?

Blockchain technology is a decentralized digital ledger technology that enables secure and transparent peer-to-peer transactions without the need for intermediaries. It allows multiple parties to have access to the same information simultaneously, and once the data is recorded, it cannot be altered or deleted.

In simple terms, a blockchain is a chain of blocks containing information that is stored on a distributed network of computers. Each block in the chain contains a unique code (hash) that is linked to the previous block, forming a chronological sequence of events.

Benefits of Blockchain in Businesses

Blockchain technology has managed to make a mark in businesses around the world, leaving a powerful impact. Blockchain helps businesses with an abundance of benefits, allowing them to stay competitive in the digital world.

A few of these benefits are listed as below:

Increased security: Blockchain technology is designed to be tamper-proof and secure. Data stored on a blockchain is protected by cryptography, making it virtually impossible to hack or alter.
Transparency: The decentralized nature of blockchain technology enables multiple parties to have access to the same information simultaneously, increasing transparency and accountability.
Efficiency: Blockchain technology streamlines processes by eliminating the need for intermediaries, reducing paperwork, and automating manual processes.
Cost reduction: By reducing the need for intermediaries and manual processes, blockchain technology can help businesses save money on transaction fees and other costs.
Improved traceability: Blockchain technology enables real-time tracking and auditing of transactions, making it easier to trace the origin of goods, track inventory, and ensure compliance with regulations.
Better customer experience: Blockchain technology can help businesses build trust with customers by providing secure and transparent transactions, improving customer loyalty and retention.

The Disruptive Impact of Blockchain on industries

Decentralization, transparency, immutability, and automation are the fundamental traits of blockchain technology, which can be implemented in various industries, resulting in numerous use cases.

Here are some industries that we believe will be heavily impacted with the disruptive power of blockchain technology:

Banking and Finance

The blockchain has been compared to the internet’s impact on the media industry, with the potential to grant billions of people worldwide access to financial services, especially those residing in third world countries where traditional banking is unavailable. Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin have facilitated cross-border transactions with minimal fees, providing a means for people to transfer funds instantly.

Due to these reasons, banks are striving to integrate blockchain technology to enhance the speed, efficiency, and security of their business operations. In addition, banks are showing a growing interest in investing in blockchain-based startups and projects.

According to statistics, around 23 banks have made at least one investment in blockchain/crypto-linked entities in the cycle from August 2021 to May 2022.

Supply Chain Management

Blockchain technology enables transactions to be securely and transparently documented in a permanent decentralized ledger. This has the potential to significantly minimize human errors and time delays. Additionally, it can be utilized to track costs, labour, waste, and emissions throughout the supply chain, which can aid in comprehending and managing the true environmental impact of products. Not just this, but the distributed ledger can also verify the authenticity and fair-trade status of products by tracing their origin.

Healthcare

The healthcare sector, like many others, heavily depends on legacy systems and is an ideal candidate for disruption. One of the most basic problems faced by hospitals is the absence of a secure platform for storing and sharing data, which renders them vulnerable to cyberattacks due to outdated infrastructure. Blockchain technology has the potential to provide a more secure means for hospitals to store data, including medical records, and share them with authorized personnel or patients. This has the potential to enhance diagnostic precision, bolster data security, and improve operational efficiency.

Government

Government systems are often slow, opaque, and prone to corruption. But things have changed, and by adopting blockchain-based systems, it is now possible to considerably streamline bureaucracy while enhancing the security, efficiency, and transparency of government operations.

For instance, in 2021, the UAE government announced 50 percent of their transactions are built on blockchain technologies. And in 2022, Dubai announced that it is fully powered by blockchain technologies.

For countries with a democratic system and government, voting plays a major role during elections that the country’s entire nation depends on. It is not new to hear that rigging usually takes place and diminishes trust in the voting system in democratic countries. But with blockchain, that can be changed as well.

Blockchain technology has the potential to facilitate voter registration and identity authentication, and electronic vote counting, hence ensuring the legitimacy of votes cast, and eliminating the possibility of tampering.

Travel and Mobility

Blockchain technology can significantly disrupt the travel and mobility sector in various ways. One potential application is in the area of seamless payments for travel-related services such as airline tickets, hotel reservations, and rental car bookings. By leveraging blockchain, transactions can be executed instantly without the need for intermediaries, resulting in lower transaction fees and faster processing times.

Additionally, by leveraging blockchain technology, peer-to-peer ridesharing applications can be decentralized, eliminating the need for third-party providers and providing a secure platform for car owners and users to arrange terms and conditions. Not just this, e-wallets integrated into the platform can enable car owners to automatically pay for expenses such as parking, highway tolls, and electricity top-ups for their vehicles.

As blockchain technology takes the industries by the storm, LYOPAY and its ecosystem of crypto-friendly products and services continue to empower people, communities, and businesses worldwide.