May the [Blockchain] Force be With You: 5 Industries to Invest in 2018

This year we all felt the difficulty to ignore the blockchain-related news due to the dramatic rise of Bitcoin. According to Gartner, the term “bitcoin” is the second most-searched-for term on their site, with 400% more searches in 2017 than the year before. In 2018, Gartner believes, this trend will continue. Even one of Forrester’s Top 10 Technology Trends To Watch: 2018 to 2020 predicts that by 2019 “a viable blockchain-based market will be commercialized.”

Blockchain-based financial services startups raised $240 million in venture funding during the first half of this year. However, its potential was recognized across other industries: from products shipped internationally, digital identity authentication; and even payment systems for musicians. That seems like a beginning.

2018 is likely to be the year with even more companies implementing blockchain. Here are the five key industries that are likely to be disrupted by blockchain technology next year.

Blockchain teams up with the Internet of Things

There are currently about 8.4 billion connected devices in the world. Intel predicts that for 2020 there will be 200 billion of them. But the essence of IoT is not just having smart devices gathering data and storing it in a database somewhere.

The Internet of Things enables devices to send data to private blockchain ledgers for inclusion in shared transactions with tamper-resistant records. For example, IBM Blockchain provides the private blockchain infrastructure of distributed peers that replicates the device data and validates the transaction through secure contracts.

Blockchain’s transparency and reliability make it a viable option for keeping safe the ever-growing number of connected devices in homes and offices. According to the ResearchGate, blockchain computes power that is used to “mine” Bitcoin which can be put to use safeguarding new-generation smart homes from cyber-burglars looking to break in and steal the data.

Moreover, cryptocurrencies built on blockchains would prove ideal for automated micro-transactions made between machines. This idea needs details, but it is likely we will see research and breakthroughs in this area in 2018.

Recruitment 2.0

HR is the next direction that can be improved by the blockchain technology. It is possible that the next breakthrough in the hrtech market will occur precisely through decentralization.

Personnel selection is the area where the blockchain will give a new leap in the development of relations between businesses and people that now lack transparency. A unified system of verification of and performance indicators will open new opportunities for recruitment.

Healthcare of the Future

Medical data management is expected to be impacted heavily during the upcoming year as well. TechBullion tells that the company called MedRec already on its way of transforming the medical field by using patients as a way of “moving” records further.

MedRec decided instead of storing health records store a signature of the record on a blockchain and notify the patient who is ultimately in control of where that record goes. MedRec features a user interface that simplifies patient interaction as it grants doctors access to information instantly.

Blockchain technology could provide a new model for health information exchanges (HIE) by making electronic medical records more efficient, disintermediated, and secure. While it is not a panacea, this new field provides a ground for innovations, investment, and proof-of-concept testing.​

Banking System

We couldn’t ignore this one. It doesn’t matter that blockchain was initially created to circumvent traditional financial institutions. Or that banks opposed cryptocurrency, fearing obsolescence if unregulated currency ever went mainstream. Blockchain created a friendship with them, and it is none other than the global banking system.

For today, multiple global banks — including Credit Suisse, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, HSBC, MUFG, and State Street have joined ranks on the Unity Settlement Coin (USC), a digital currency created by Switzerland’s UBS bank in conjunction with UK-based Clearmatics, according to the Forbes. By exploiting the benefits of the blockchain, USC partners want to make transactions settlement faster and safer for central banks.

Therein lies the tremendous opportunity for blockchain development in the banking industry. Now that banks have decided to stop fighting blockchain and start adopting it, the door is wide open for tech start-ups that can provide blockchain solutions to the financial institutions.

Charity / Fundraising

Startups are usually about moving quickly and solving problems as fast as possible. Fundraising seems related to this topic — raising money at the right time and from the right people is critical to the roadmap. However, raising money from the traditional route of venture capitalists can take months of meetings, travel, and email back and forth before anything is finalized.

By using a blockchain, a self-verifying system, venture firms can transfer funding in as little as five minutes after making their investment decision. It will speed up the entire process of raising funding for charity and reduce the amount of friction in the fundraising funnel. For instance, Grace, a small startup organization, developed a blockchain-based platform where foundations, donors, and promoters can prosper. In addition to transparency and security, the platform puts charities in the spotlight, letting the community to contribute to their cause, exponentially improving the exposures of the organizations.

In conclusion, 2018 is going to be an extremely busy year. The time will show whether our predictions were right or not so much. Which industries do you think will be disrupted by the blockchain?