Could Blockchain Technology Thrive Without Crypto?

6/16/2022

Tech

0 min read




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Could Blockchain Survive if Unchained from Digital Currency?

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, and even Dogecoin would not exist without blockchain technology. But can blockchain technology exist without cryptocurrencies? Cryptocurrency has been having a bad year; most of the currencies hit a high against the USD in November of last year and have slid to a fraction of that high point since. A research director at CoinDesk named Nolan Bauerle says 90% of cryptocurrencies today will not survive a crash in the markets. He does, however, believe that the few survivors will thrive. But there are naysayers like Berkshire Hathaway’s Charlie Munger, who said he “admires the Chinese” for banning cryptocurrencies. Munger has also been quoted as saying that digital currency “is going to zero” and has described it as a “venereal disease.”

Recent problems with bitcoin (BTC.X) and smaller cryptos, including price-driven margin calls, central bank interference, the SEC and other regulators exploring ways to tighten controls, a failed bitcoin-based bond offering in Ecuador, and current investor fear put the future in question. Hypothetically, what if bitcoin and all non-central bank-sponsored digital currency disappeared? Would blockchain technology still have blossoming applications in other areas?

About Blockchain

The technology now serves a very wide range of applications. At its core, blockchain is a distributed digital ledger that forever stores data of any kind. A blockchain can record unique information about cryptocurrency transactions, non-fungible token (NFT) ownership, DeFi smart contracts, and far more.

While any conventional database can store this sort of information, blockchain is unique in that it’s completely decentralized. Rather than being maintained in one location by an administrator, many identical copies of a blockchain database are held across a network (nodes).

The majority of nodes must verify and then confirm back the legitimacy of new data before a new block can be added to the ledger. For a cryptocurrency, this protects against fraud and confirms that a coin has not been spent more than once by the holder. Transactions are kept secure using cryptography at the node level.

Blockchain Use Beyond Cryptocurrency

The theory that created blockchain is rooted in the theoretical
paper that launched bitcoin. Since then, the security and verifiability of ownership provided have caused its applications to spread from everything from agriculture to fine wines. The most widespread non-crypto adoption is in banking, payments or asset transfer, contracts, supply chain oversight, voting, and NFT art. These are the larger current uses explained.

Banking, blockchain is being used to process
transactions in fiat currency, like US dollars and euros. This is often faster than sending money through a bank or other financial institution as the transactions can be speedily processed even outside of normal business hours.

Asset Transfers, blockchain can also be used to record and transfer the ownership of different assets. This is popular with digital assets like NFTs, a representation of ownership of digital art, videos, in-game items or anything else deemed unique.

The technology is also used to process the ownership, like the deed to real estate, vehicles, and other “titled” assets. In a transaction, both parties would first use the blockchain to verify that one owns the property and the other has the money to buy; then, they could move forward and complete and record the sale on the blockchain.

Using this process, there is the ability to transfer titles without manually submitting paperwork to update any government records; it would be simultaneously updated in the blockchain.

Contracts (Smart Contracts), another innovation, is self-executing contracts commonly called “smart
contracts.” These digital contracts are executed automatically once conditions are met. For instance, a payment might be released instantly once the buyer and seller have met all specified parameters for a deal.

Supply Chain Monitoring, supply chains involve massive amounts of logistics and information, especially when it involves several stops around the globe, as a computer chip does. With traditional data storage methods, it can be hard to trace the source of problems and slowdowns. Storing this information on the blockchain would make it easier to review. There are products in use today that monitor food stages from harvest to just before consumption.

Voting, as blockchain is a superior verification system, it is being considered to be implemented to prevent fraud in voting. In theory, blockchain voting would allow people to submit votes that couldn’t be tampered with.

Blockchain Companies With Low Cryptocurrency Baggage

One company early-stage company that exemplifies what it is to have a primary focus on non-currency products but instead embrace future efforts like Web 3.0, Staking, gaming, NFTs, DeFi, and metaverse applications is Tokens.com ($SMURF). Read the most recent analyst
report on SMURF from the Noble Capital Markets analyst that covers this industry.

Another is TAAL Distributed Information Technologies ($TAALF). TAAL, blockchain services, provides professional-grade, highly scalable blockchain infrastructure and transactional platforms that support businesses building solutions and applications and developing, operating, and managing distributed computing systems for enterprise users. Read the most recent analyst
report on TAAL from the Noble Capital Markets analyst that covers this industry.

Take-Away

The technology that gave birth to cryptocurrency has taken on a life of its own, it provides efficiency in asset transfer, added security against fraud, ownership verification, round-the-clock and round-the-globe transactions, proof of stake, and proof-of-work, like no other system or technology. It’s likely to expand as it finds its way into helping our lives improve and will certainly be a staple in business dealings in the near future. And it can do this with or without private cryptocurrencies or stablecoins.

Paul Hoffman

Managing Editor, Channelchek

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