New PwC Study Reveals 84% of Businesses Experimenting with Blockchain Technology

According to a new study released by accounting giant PwC, more than 84% of companies surveyed are actively experimenting with the development of blockchain systems. The 2018 Global Blockchain Survey concluded that although the technology is innovative in nature, there is still a long way to go until full implementation is achieved.

Findings of the 2018 Global Blockchain Survey

The firm argued that one of the key stumbling blocks currently being faced in the R&D blockchain arms race is trust. Essentially, organizations still have doubts on issues such as reliability, scalability and most importantly—security.

Furthermore, although the general consensus within the report is that blockchain will eventually play a significant role in the future of business and commerce, the technology will still need to be rolled out in gradual stages. Most firms recognize that there will no doubt be teething problems along the way, but the survey ascertained that most companies expect the benefits to eventually outweigh the costs.

In a separate report by Cowen, the survey concluded that mass adoption is likely to average 5.9 years.

Nevertheless, over in the public sector there are already a number of prominent governmental departments that are looking to bite the blockchain-bullet. For example, the United Arab Emirates recently announced that they are looking to place the nation’s land registry records on the blockchain, and Australia recently signed a partnership with IBM to channel government records on the blockchain protocol. Then over in Estonia, the nation has advanced even further: its citizens can officially vote on their smartphone devices, with the data posted and stored on the blockchain.

Ultimately, some commentators argue that the distinction between cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology are starting to become ever-more present. Although many believe that the two go hand-in-hand, any implementation at a corporate or governmental level will certainly be installed on a ‘permissioned and private’ basis. As a result, it remains to be seen what influence, if any, the rise of institutional interest in blockchain technology will have on the value of cryptocurrencies in the medium to long term.