What You Need to Know About Blockchain Technology

While the current buzzing of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is hard to ignore, there is a need to further explore the underlying technologies that make Bitcoin trading possible. Blockchain technology is a virtual public ledger that records all content in a secure and transparent manner. The benefits of blockchain are far greater than maintaining its relevance in the coming years, unlike the cryptographic currencies it aims to support.

When it comes to blockchain, people will probably first think about bitcoin. Actually, bitcoin is one of the most well-known use cases for blockchain. As we know, bitcoin is a cryptocurrency that's decentralized, meaning that there's no central authority needed in order to maintain this cryptocurrency and to facilitate the exchanges of value. This is made possible by the underlying blockchain technology.

Blockchain is a open-sourced software that implements a digital ledger, which records and validate exchange of cryptocurrency. Just like there're many pages in a ledger, blockchain is made of individual blocks and each block is a set of digital records. 

Here are six of the most important benefits of blockchain that will be useful for businesses in different industries.

Supply Chain Management

Blockchain technology provides cost-effective and traceable benefits to the supply chain management industry. Blockchain can be used to track all movement of goods, the source and quality of goods.

This helps simplify processes within the industry, such as ownership transfer, payment, and production process assurance.

Quality Assurance

If irregularities are detected somewhere in the supply chain, blockchain systems can cause the origin to be found.

This will make it easier for businesses using the technology to investigate and implement the actions needed to correct the problem.

Accounting

Logging transactions through blockchain can almost eliminate human error and prevent data from being tampered with. Records in a blockchain are validated each time they are passed from one block in the chain to the next.

In addition to providing guaranteed document accuracy, the process also leaves a highly traceable audit trail.

Voting

As with supply chain management, voting comes down to trust. The use of blockchain technology in local elections can significantly reduce electoral fraud, which has become a problem despite the prevalence of electronic voting systems.

Another example is how Nasdaq uses blockchain to facilitate shareholder voting.

Stock Trading

The idea of implementing blockchain technology for securities and commodity training is not new.

Given the openness and reliability of blockchain technology, it is not surprising that stock exchanges see it as the next major advance in trading.

Energy Supply

In some parts of the world, households and businesses can now use interactive grids that support blockchain to achieve reliable tracking of sustainable energy solutions. Blockchain can also be used to improve the tracking of clean energy. Renewable energy has traditionally followed government-issued tradable certificates.

It is clear that blockchain technology is making progress in different industries other than cryptocurrencies. While most people are already ready for a fragmented ledger, advances in blockchain technology mean it may not become mainstream.