12-13 June, 2019 | ExCel, London

From obscure beginnings on the very margins of digital technology, cryptocurrencies have in recent years erupted into the mainstream consciousness. Bitcoin and its army of copycats have made serious, if turbulent, plays to disrupt centuries-old fiscal systems. Through so-called ‘tokenisation’, the ability for anyone to create a digital coin has inspired the emergence of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), an alternative funding model that is providing the rocket fuel for thousands of tech start-ups to get off the ground.

Yet behind cryptocurrencies and ICOs, there is a foundation technology that many people believe will have a much more profound and fundamental impact on business, industry and society itself - blockchain. Blockchain is described as a distributed ledger system that creates immutable, permanent transaction records in real time without the need for third-party verification. Its main attributes are that it promises to make any kind of digital exchange between two parties more efficient, more transparent and more secure than ever previously possible.

Built on the principles of peer-to-peer networks, advanced private key cryptography and decentralised exchange protocols, blockchain works on the principle that the part and the whole of the ledger system are inseparable. Each new transaction, or ‘block’, carries a unique time stamp and cryptographic ‘hash’, which when added to the ‘chain’ creates a brand new version of the ledger. The logic of the chain means the sequence of blocks cannot be changed or interfered with once created. What is more, no one authority controls or owns the blockchain - it resides simultaneously with every ‘node’ that uses it (i.e. the people or institutions that are members of the blockchain), and can only be updated once every existing node verifies the new transaction.

This has the effect of creating a fully transparent, permanent record of transactions that are virtually impregnable to manipulation of fraud. Without the need for external verification, value does not leak out to third parties and users are not beholden to the terms and conditions of a central authority. Instant digital communication and verification supports automation, providing another cornerstone for the drive towards digital transformation.

Fully transparent

Permanent records

No external verification needed

Instant digital communication

Incubated in the niche worlds of alt-coins and ICOs, blockchain is now gaining traction as a mainstream technology with revolutionary potential. Perhaps because of the associations with cryptocurrencies, the financial sector has been particularly prominent in putting its investment muscle behind blockchain; IDC expects financial services to account for more than a third of the $2.9bn it forecasts will be poured in blockchain this year.

But blockchain is far from limited to a financial straightjacket and is finding innovative, high value use cases across the full spectrum of commerce and industry, including global commodities trading, supply chain and logistics, manufacturing, food and drink, retail, energy and utilities, healthcare and many more.

To help illustrate the breadth of opportunities blockchain has to offer, in this report we highlight five examples of blockchain being used by established enterprises and industry sectors to drive value, transparency and security in their operations.

Blockchain for Business Summit takes place 12-13 June at the ExCeL in London and is part of TechXLR8, the flagship event of London Tech Week. Now in its third year, the summit leaves hype, speculation and cyrptocurrencies behind to focus on real world use cases from industries and business leaders who are reaping the rewards of blockchain right now.