What’s Happening in Blockchain?

Blockchain continues to grow beyond digital currencies, disrupting other industries with its secure distributed ledger technology. Recent developments have been made in the fields of supply chain, healthcare, the Internet of Things (IoT), and more.

Supply Chain

The complex world of the global supply chain market presents a formidable challenge to manufacturers. Blockchain technology can help make it easier.

Walmart Canada recently launched its own blockchain for its transportation system. The technology is helping the company resolve issues with invoice dispute resolution and real-time data distribution. It provides a real-time view of the transport time. This has the potential to decrease disputes with the company’s suppliers by creating more accurate invoicing. In turn, fewer disputes over costs can decrease the wait time for freight carriers to receive payment.

Thailand is also looking into using the technology to improve its transportation. However, it’s for different reasons. The country’s Excise Department wants to use secure technology to give tax refunds to oil exporters and prevent VAT fraud. Blockchain is able to give the department more accurate knowledge of the route taken, from the shipping dock to its destination. Trade verification is also made simpler because of the increased security provided to the documents.

Healthcare

Humana, MultiPlan, Quest Diagnostics, UnitedHealthcare Group, and Optum launched the Synaptic Health Alliance in April of 2018. Following the launch, Ascension and Aetna also joined. This alliance was created to help ensure efficient patient data management and sharing. The pilot program uses the blockchain to ensure health plan provider directors include up-to-date physician information in their reports.

IoT

Blockchain has the potential to provide a secure infrastructure for IoT devices. Interconnected IoT devices will be able to share data while logging the time of the transaction in a secure distributed ledger.

Automotive company Hyundai is developing technology for vehicle applications. If successful, blockchain technology projects could expand into the company’s other IoT device applications and allow for secure transaction exchanges.

Energy

A new program will allow residents of New Delhi to harvest and sell power. Power Ledger, a blockchain-based energy trading company, is teaming up with BSES Rajdhani Power Limited to develop a technology to allow peer-to-peer trading of renewable energy.

The pilot will occur in New Delhi because of its solar energy policy. Currently, gated communities with solar panels are able to sell the access energy they generate to the main grid. This initiative would allow these communities to not only sell it back into the grid but also to other communities through a blockchain-enabled transaction.

Prepare for a Secure Future

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Resources

Macwan, Urvish. (15 November 2019). Blockchain For The Internet of Things (IoT): Why It And How It Works. Customer Think.

Mearian, Lucas. (19 November 2019). Walmart launches ‘world’s largest’ blockchain-based freight-and-payment network. Computer World.

Gibbions, Serenity. (19 November 2019). 3 Practical Ways To Use Blockchain In Your Business In 2020. Forbes.

(25 November 2019). Thailand looks at blockchain to stem oil export VAT fraud. Ledger Insights.

Garrity, Mackenzie. (26 November 2019). What Optum, Humana, Ascension & more are doing to advance blockchain. Becker’s Health IT and CIO Report.

(27 November 2019). Blockchain-based energy trading platform Power Ledger to launch pilot program in New Delhi. Tokenpost.