Running Head: SIGNIFICANCE OF BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGIES 1

Significance of Blockchain Technologies

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Introduction

Since the development of blockchain technologies over a decade ago as a modern system,

it has increasingly provided solutions to varying transactions while broadly eliminating the

possibility of double-spending, helping many corporates have secured business operations.

Specifically, many industries comprising manufacturing, finance, education, and science have

been using blockchain technologies in their business applications. The system provides

collaboration, trustability, credibility, transparency, identification, and real-time communication.

Blockchain is a cryptocurrency wallet that supports Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, and even Etherium.

Blockchain gathers data fed on the system and categorizes the information in groups referred to

as blocks containing the information (Casino, Dasaklis & Patsakis, 2019). Notably, the blocks

have specified storage volumes in which, once filled, they create the blockchain. The new

information generated is sealed in a new block and so on, illustrating that the technologies can

hold much information as possible with the data remaining secure.

The technology is fundamentally irreversible and usually is implemented in a

decentralized manner. This new technology has significantly interrupted the traditional brick and

mortar methods for conducting business. The business depends on the transactions and

applications that require the entrusted parties' centralization for verification. This implies that the

blockchain technologies' architecture provides security, audibility, robustness, and even

transparency. The application programming interfaces (APIs) have proved significant for the

blockchain connection between the hard and the software within the system, facilitating

improved communication because of the network's data exchange and transmission. Blockchain

technologies have demonstrated that contracts, records, and transactions that form part of the

political, legal, and economic systems and the organizational assets and boundaries can easily be
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protected. This reduces unnecessary spending while at the same time improving the effectiveness

of businesses and overall livelihoods of the population.

Literature Review

According to (Chang et al., 2020), the blockchain's inherent characteristics of design and

architecture have proven that the banking industry can heavily depend on the system because of

the security, transparency, and audibility elements. Blockchain has been viewed as a distributed

database system developed through ordered blocks from which these blocks are incontrovertible.

Accordingly, this demonstrates that the banking sector immensely benefits from blockchain

technologies through effective bookkeeping, securing transactions, improving efficiency and

commerce. It reliably provides an effective system for a ledger system that credits and debits

every transaction, increasingly providing improved integrity and ethics for the business. The

ability to maintain secure transactions leads to effective auditing while at the same time ensuring

that the customers can transact through the online mobile securely hence improving people's

ability to do their business. Blockchain simplifies the multifaceted problems of insecure

transactions within banking institutions. Every transaction within the corporation is easily

identified, reducing the probability of employee errors, eliminating unnecessary costs spending,

and tampering. The increased use of the new technologies in the banking industry has facilitated

digitization, eliminating the manual works worth tons, hence improving financial institutions'

productivity and eliminating errors, delays, and mistakes. Blockchain has developed

decentralized finance, referred to as the DeFi, which involves the amalgamation of the digital

assets, smart financial contracts, and digital assets established based on the public blockchain

such as the Bitcoin Etherium. This reveals that the DeFi application does not broadly depend

upon the traditional banking model. Decentralized Finance improves the symmetry data crucial
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for the industry in which every information should be heavily safeguarded. Similarly, the

technologies provide integrated smart contracts, which improve the banking sector's

bookkeeping and maintains proper records and paperwork.

Blockchain technologies have notably improved service delivery in the supply chain

industry, given that the decentralized, distributive, and innovative technologies have been

maintaining integrity and confidentiality in every transaction (Dutta, Choi, Somani & Butala,

2020). Specifically, the system has an open and shared ledger among the blocks that easily help

record and store transactions and usually are supported by the cryptographic value. Once the

information has been fed on the blockchain, it cannot be edited without all the crucial parties

involved. Specifically, blockchain records transactions from the raw materials procurement to

production, storage, and distribution, which are sufficiently done through the blockchain-based

BPR (Business Process Reengineering) model. As denoted, the blockchain structure is

systematically organized using particular codes sequentially to the previous blocks

demonstrating the agility of a secure independent chain. Notably, block mining validates the new

blocks hence easily building a defense mechanism that guards any form of corruption or

interference, enabling the supply chain to maintain its data transactions. Given that the supply

chain industry has moved its operations to online business, blockchain technologies offer secure

digital platforms that improve business operations. Specifically, the blockchain does the

following function in the supply chain industry and all the other sectors comprising pre-

authorization, transaction, post-transaction, and monitoring. At the pre-authorization stage, the

system reduces the risk by providing transparency and data matching, ensuring capturing the

essential data. Similarly, the technology automates the transaction stage by delivering secure,

real-time transactions and ensuring irrevocable settlement. In the post-transaction, it provides

auto execution, decentralized clearance, and process disintermediation. In the last stage of

monitoring, the system notes the automation of the anti-fraud among the third parties and aiding

in the auditing of the transactions.

According to (Fekih & Lahami, 2020), the healthcare industry has undoubtedly benefited

immensely from blockchain technologies, hence improving service delivery and increasing the

effectiveness of one of the industry's crucial industries. The technologies have been essential in

the assimilation of electronic medical records, which has significantly transformed the healthcare

industry by improving health data integration vital in reducing medical errors, patient

information loss, and bureaucracy elimination within the healthcare industry. Specifically,

electronic health records (EHRs) is a decentralized system that provides permissions.

Authorization, data sharing, and permissions among healthcare professionals help share the

patient information starting from the patients' treatment history and medications provided before

improving the patient's current healthcare needs due to data availability. Similarly, the EHRs

provide the Etherium and Medrec platforms, empowering patients with a vast knowledge of how

they can easily access healthcare information. The blockchain application integrates the EHRs

system, specifically the FHIRChain (Fast Health Interoperability Records + Blockchain) that

encompasses applications using ethereum in the clinical data distribution, thereby emphasizing

the healthcare record management essential for better decision making and improved efficiency.

Medshare, a system developed by blockchain technologies, is a cloud-developed system that has

played a significant role in controlling and auditing that shares information among the health

professionals while at the same time ensuring that it reaches the intended parties.

Secondly, the Block chai technologies have been used in remote patient monitoring,

including the patient status attained through IoT (Internet of Things) devices and mobile devices
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by storing, data sharing, and retrieving the data information during the biomedical data. Thirdly,

blockchain technologies are used in the pharmaceutical supply chain. The system ensures quality

management compliance by providing that the hospital keeps the quality drugs for medication.

The technologies scan the inadequate medications or counterfeit medications, helping the

hospital management address a problem that impairs the overall health's successful attainment.

Similarly, the technologies enable unearthing the drug regulations as they can detect the falsified

drugs. Last but not least, the blockchain technologies have been used in health insurance claims

because of its data's auditability, transparency, and immutability.

The manufacturing industry has significantly benefited from blockchain technologies

immensely given that the smart contract has been crucial in regulating the relationship between

the client and the construction players. Smart contracts allow the work to be split into smaller

portions with construction materials being bought directly from the manufacturing companies,

thereby eliminating the middlemen hence providing the value of every money spent within the

organization. During the work execution, the contractor does not worry about the monitoring,

scheduling, safety, health, and even the construction works' supervision. Notably, the blockchain

application provides an automated law system fitted with algorithms and rules at the smart

contract enabling the contractor or the project owner to monitor its progress. Effective

communication is crucial for the attainment, ensuring that costs and project work out as

scheduled. Similarly, blockchain technologies aids making the payment eliminating the

inconsistencies, which reduces the possibility of work. Conversely, there is increased

documentation at the construction site with electronic document management (EDM), helping

solve the construction sites' multifaceted problems. Electronic document management helps in
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procurement, materials, rapport of drawings, variations, certificates, and the engineer instructions

(Mokhun & Yukhnevich, 2013).

According to (Treiblmaier 2018), blockchain technologies have improved the quality of

life among the population. Specifically, the introduction of Bitcoin cryptocurrency enables the

peer-to-peer electronic cash transfer system. Developed by the founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, in

2008, the blockchain technologies innovation established that people could mine Bitcoin.

Significantly, the role of buying and selling Bitcoin has since escalated with the supply of the

market unable to meet the demand. Accordingly, blockchain technologies have facilitated the

development of many cryptocurrencies. They have been empowered by the infrastructure system

that can transact bulk transactions while providing transparency, decentralization, and

immutability. One element that makes blockchain technologies stand out encompasses working

without a centralized server's reliance, given that the transactions are verified by the user systems

(Leible, Schlager, Schubotz & Gipp, 2019). The system is developed in a chronological order

containing the cryptographic based on the previous ones, leading to a chain that easily integrates

data.

Opportunities of Adopting Blockchain Technologies

Blockchain is a peer-to-peer network established in 2008, as part of the Bitcoin proposal

as a virtual currency framework with an immense opportunity to facilitate currency issuance,

ownership transfer, and transaction confirmation, thereby improving people's social lifestyles

(Iansiti & Lakhani, 2017). One of the benefits for blockchain adoption entails securely

performing multiple transactions within the shortest time possible, enabling people to send and

receive funds securely and transparently, thereby eliminating unnecessary costs usually

occasioned by middlemen. The blockchain system replicates several similar databases, with each
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hosted and sustained by an interested party. As such, when a change is fed on one copy, the other

copies simultaneously get updated. This implies that the technologies can be employed to

safeguard their operations and improve efficiency and performance. As denoted before, there is

no need for intermediaries to verify the asset ownership transfer. Therefore, when a transaction

has been done using blockchain technologies, it is verifiably and securely updated within

seconds, illustrating the level of interconnectedness in the world. This implies that blockchain

technologies have played a crucial role in the technological revolution for organizational,

governance, societal and organizational performance.

The blockchain ledger has been instrumental in auditing the trail of goods and services,

which improves business transactions' overall security, eliminating threats by authenticating the

traded goods and services. As noted, one of the most significant elements of blockchain

technologies is ensuring accountability which improves integrity while shaping leadership and

governance (Koksal, 2019). This implies that upon adoption in various industries, they will

enhance their business operations, meet their objectives and meet the consumer needs and wants

while at the same time exceeding the expectations. Before developing blockchain technologies,

there was an increasing cyber insecurity trend, which remained a considerable problem that

affected the corporates and people because they stood at risk of loss of their information as it

could be easily be corrupted. However, since the introduction of blockchain technologies, the

cyber-attacks levels have significantly reduced because they established adequate solutions that

secure data from third parties' influence and tampering. This is because blockchain technologies

involve peer-to-peer connection, which ensures that data cannot be altered. Each data stored in

the blockchain technologies is usually verified and further encoded through unique algorithms.

By eliminating the centralized system, the technologies provide a secure and transparent system
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for transactions recording audibly without disclosing a person's private information illustrating

the benefits of adopting these technologies. Some of the software used by blockchain

technologies comprises Guardtime that offers products and services related to technology.

The Possible Negative Impact of Blockchain Technologies On Health, Privacy, And

Security

One of the main adverse effects of blockchain technologies comprises immense energy

consumption, which affects the environment and habitats. Notably, the blockchain demands

enormous computing power that needs tremendous electricity as well as cooling power. Reliably,

the blockchain's root problems are that all the technology users must process the transactions,

illustrating their impact. The multifaceted algorithms' running presents computing power's

immense problem, demonstrating that environmental security stands threatened. Secondly, while

the technologies have yielded vast benefits, it has proved to have vulnerabilities specifically at

the blockchain endpoints that have been regarded as less insecure, prompting increased hacking

susceptibility. People may lose their assets and investments. Notably, since the establishment of

the technologies, there has not been adequate regulation revealing that at some point, the

technologies built by a person may in the future be compromised to attain unspecified agendas,

which shall cause varying impact to the users. This means that the blockchain's security remains

at enormous risk, which may interfere with people's information already saved at the machines.

In the healthcare industry, there has been distrust of the system utilization, which has been

occasioned by the lack of adequate skilled information technology personnel in which the

absence of inadequate technical capabilities and skills threatens population health if implemented

by unskillful healthcare professionals (Abu-elezz, Hassan, Nazeemudeen, Househ & Abd-

alrazaq, 2020). Simultaneously, blockchain technologies are developed based on pseudonyms

that validate information on the disseminated ledger. Therefore, HIPAA privacy in the healthcare

industry prohibits the increased use of pseudo names, illustrating that it increases identity theft's

susceptibility, thus becoming a security threat.

The Application of Blockchain Technologies in Organizations

Master Card is one of the international companies that use a blockchain because of the

buzzworthy application such as Litecoin, Bitcoin, and Ethereum, which has faced increased

demand since the population has headed towards this direction. Significantly, the company has

vested interests in blockchain technology and technologies in general because this aligns with

their business operations. While the company is not an associate for the blockchain, it has

practically demonstrated that it has invested heavily in the blockchain applications becoming the

third company after Alibaba and IBM. With blockchain patents, they have facilitated research

and development and increased clients whose satisfaction has made them realize objectives.

Conversely, Walmart is an American company that remains the overall leading retailer

and has dominated the market for a long time. Notably, the company's success has been

facilitated by the increased use of the IBM supply chain technology, specifically the Hyperledger

Fabric platform system that provides the supply chain procedure back up. Similarly, the

company has coordinated supplies from the farmers with the technologies checking their

worthiness before making the prompt payment through the system. The company has partnered

along with nine other food companies to ensure consistency in production. As denoted, the

company has partnered with IBM to develop a blockchain that aids in tracing foods from the

international space by the supply chain. Along with the other companies, Walmart's goal is to

solve problems associated with food recalls, which causes immense damage raging from
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increased transportation costs, customer complaints, product returns, and reduced purchasing

power (Sharma, 2020).

Finally, Ford, one of the automobile manufacturing companies, has partnered with IBM

that aids in tracing raw materials used in car production. Tracking cobalt elements has

significantly helped the company obtain high-quality products, facilitating improved

manufacturing processes to meet customer expectations. Notably, when a cobalt product has

been mined, they get into the ledger from which the company starts tracking, facilitating

efficiency in transportation.

The Future of Blockchain Technologies

Different studies have demonstrated that the future of blockchain technologies will

positively influence many industries comprising entertainment, transport, healthcare, fashion,

manufacturing, and supply chain management. The decentralized systems system will

continually integrate the global infrastructure, positively impacting the digital world in which

businesses will use the technologies application in their business models. Specifically, the

blockchain promises enhanced supply chain management and continually improves product

development, manufacturing, product storage, and distribution. Blockchain’s transparency in the

transactions helps management understand the origin of different products whose history

eliminates the black market associated with counterfeit products. In the same way, inventory

management remains crucial and will in the future, which guarantees better resource

organization certifying corporates with efficiency. The increased utilization of a dispersed ledger

provides accurate and timely information entries. Compared with being fed by the employees,

the technologies offer error-free services increasing becoming the preference of many

companies.
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Conversely, for better quality assurance and auditing, all the companies will continually

use the systems to identify the problems within the functions leading to prompt action, which

improves the organizational performance. As noted before, blockchain technologies' efficacy

maintains permanent records in its internal systems and external partnerships that provide

accuracy yet time-consuming. The blockchain's automation services help the management in

their daily operations while at the same time adhering to the regulatory requirements. These

technologies hold the future of intelligent contract execution, eliminating the traditional methods

associated with inconsistencies. These brick and mortar models mainly involve expiration dates

prompting auto-renewals and increased signage requirements in which blockchain technology

are digitized whose coding protocols develop smart contracts that enforce particular time-

sensitive mandatory. Finally, blockchain technologies will provide faster business transactions at

lower prices because of the increased efficiency in processing payments, eliminating

intermediaries. The blockchain technologies' market size in 2020 stood over at $3.67 billion,

with the anticipated market value growth estimated to grow to $5.88 billion in 2021. Notably, the

growth rate between 2021 and 2028 is projected to be 82.4%. This illustrates that the future of

blockchain technologies is automation and that companies will increasingly depend on these

technologies to improve their performance and effectiveness.

Summary and Conclusion

The fundamentals for blockchain include distributed ledgers, encryption, auditing, and

mining. Blockchain is a decentralized public system that records immense transactions that are

shared throughout the blockchain network. The various transactions are verified by the

technologies linked with the Bitcoin network, reducing the cyber-attacks susceptibility. The

encryption of the blockchain technologies is fitted with the cryptographic algorithm that secures
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the blocks. The technologies audit the work while at the same time validating the transactions

helping solve the multifaceted business operations. Equally, blockchain technologies aid miners

in using their resources to invalidate their new transactions, record the same at the ledgers, and

attain rewards. The banking industry is one of the industries that has benefited immensely from

system integration. People from any part of the world can send and receive money within the

shortest time possible. The system's ability to eliminate the middlemen has facilitated reduced

costs and improved business efficiency. After introducing blockchain technology, there have

been increased global payments and cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and Etherium. Similarly,

since the enrolment of blockchain technologies, there has been reduced cyber insecurity. The

system detects malicious attacks because of the peer-to-peer connections. The elimination of the

centralized system has provided accurate and transparent which secures information providing

people with the satisfaction of secure payments. This implies that upon adoption in various

industries, they will improve their business operations, meet their objectives, and meet the

consumer needs and wants while at the same time exceeding the expectations.
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