We looked at three of the rising tech firms finding use-cases for blockchain technology and offering efficiency solutions for the real estate, collectibles and payments sectors
Blockchain innovation
As blockchain and DLT (decentralised ledger technology) find use cases in the modern world, it is worth delving into how some of these companies have adopted the technology.
Blockchain has the potential to improve the efficiency of a number of sectors, such as finance, law, property, transactions and much more.
We took a look at some of the innovative tech firms that are attempting to use blockchain to create business solutions for existing enterprises.
Read on to see our top 3 picks this month for blockchain adoption.
Coadjute – Real estate blockchain
The process of buying and selling real estate is typically very complex and time consuming as so many parties are involved in the process – estate agents market the property, banks award the finance, conveyancers draw up contracts, and the list goes on.
Coadjute is planning to reduce the time needed for property transactions with a blockchain network that connects the parties through their existing software, enabling them to see the same information at the same time.
With the project set to launch later this year, we thought it was worth taking a look at what their product will offer the UK property market.
What does it do?
Coadjute works by connecting the relevant parties needed to buy a house — mortgage brokers, estate agents, conveyancers and lenders. Once connected, it enables them to share documents and data in real-time over the blockchain, and even see progress end-to-end across the whole property transaction.
The improved visibility and communication cuts time and cost for all parties.
Coadjute also boasts cutting-edge technology to keep any data sent over the blockchain safe and secure — a vital feature if you are required to send sensitive data, such as proof of your income and identity to lenders.
Over the last few years of development, Coadjute has been working with the major firms that serve the property industry to build a network of enabled property software. This could be game changing for the real estate sector, particularly in a post-pandemic world where interconnected remote professionals need platforms like this more than ever.
Cryptograph – Digital collectables using blockchain
With online and digital spaces becoming more relevant to our daily lives, companies are increasingly looking for ways to meet the needs of a global online audience. Over the last decade, Bitcoin has been making the case for the peer-to-peer transfer of digital currency – but what about digital goods?
Over the last few years there has been a marked rise in digital goods; think Fortnite and other free to play games that sell cosmetic items for players to customise their characters and show off rare items. The question now is; how can this concept be taken to the next level? Could blockchain make it possible to hold an immutably unique item that allows 1s and 0s to be irrefutably ‘owned’ and unique?
What does it do?
Cryptograph met this increasingly growing demand by building a blockchain based on Ethereum smart contracts using non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
With a focus on supporting creators, Cryptographs are one-of-a-kind digital items created by artists, celebrities and designers that collectors will hold, trade and sell. To encourage the creation of these items, creators are paid a portion of initial auction sales, as well as a cut from future sales on their created items — a welcome departure for creators who are typically only paid once when they make their initial sale, for example an artist that sells one of their paintings.
As a rule, a minimum of 10% of all the revenue generated by a Cryptograph goes to the creator’s chosen charity and in many cases, Cryptographs give upwards of 70% of their total revenue to charity forever.
Creators include:
- Crypto leaders, such as Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin, Bitcoin.com CEO Roger Ver, Parity Technologies Founder Jutte Steiner, Vlad Zamfir, Emin Gun Sirer, Alex Van De Sande, Mihai Alisie, and Erik Voorhees.
- Actors and Actresses, such as Jason Momoa, Paris Hilton, Ashton Kutcher, Kristen Wiig, Seth Green, Josh Hutcherson, Ryan Phillippe, Adrien Brody and Dany Huston
- Musicians and producers, such as Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello, producer and songwriter Scott Storch.
Celebrity Contributors
Amongst Cryptograph’s famous artists are Paris Hilton:
Today I am auctioning off my @Cryptograph of #Munchkin to benefit 3 amazing charities: @LAFoodBank @MealsOnWheels @BB4Homeless. The auction is live now for the next 72 hours at https://t.co/rCroea8vCg pic.twitter.com/XP18LGtHsi
— ParisHilton (@ParisHilton) August 13, 2020
Aquaman star Jason Momoa:
Family Guy star Seth Green:
Wonder Woman 1984 & SNL star Kristin Wiig:
Graffiti artist Alec Monopoly:
Billon – National currencies and whole documents on blockchain
Billon is an exciting tech company that has considered how Bitcoin’s creation has posed serious challenges to the future of financial services, but also seen how volatility and anti-regulatory stance of crypto designs have deterred regulated markets from adopting them. Joining the best of two worlds, the firm has developed a protocol that can incorporate a blockchain with fiat currencies, while still adhering to regulations.
Part of the trouble that companies have faced in trying to bring new payment solutions to market has been the need for regulations to catch up to the pace of new technology. Facebook for instance has seen repeated obstruction in the pursuit of its Libra, now Diem, project.
By vowing to operate from within existing monetary systems and regulations and by digitizing national currencies rather than using cryptocurrencies, Billon can help enable regulatory compliance for financial institutions and therefore focus on ways to bring new innovations to the financial system.
This means that the Billon blockchain has the potential to fit seamlessly into the financial system and provide innumerable efficiency benefits to businesses; so far, Billon has demonstrated it can transact micropayments, enable cross-border transactions as well as transfer documents and data.
How does it work?
Billon brings solutions to businesses looking for ways to reduce workload on back office resources by making payments to customers and merchants quicker and easier.
Their payment solutions offer payouts and cash handling systems which can be seamlessly integrated with a company’s existing tech infrastructure to make the day to day running of businesses simpler and more efficient. Banking IT giant FIS invested in Billon and is using its blockchain for instant money transfers in its new core banking system. Billon also teamed up with Raiffeisen Bank International to build a blockchain platform tokenizing euro and other assets, serving Raiffeisen and its clients in CEE.
They also offer specialised payment processing systems that they claim can “support any money circulation scenario,” meaning they can support a wide range of business models, like business payouts, cash-ins or remittances.
Billon also boasts powerful document and data sharing capabilities and the company is currently looking for ways they can make an impact on the post-pandemic world.
For example, the latest proposal is to create a way that people can prove they have had a Covid-19 vaccination for entering premises or boarding an aeroplane by presenting an immutable record of their vaccination history. Billon is building a blockchain-based app for securing COVID-19 documents which will be available for UK healthcare providers and businesses in Q2 this year. Wojtek Kostrzewa, CEO of Billon Group, comments: “We want people to return to normal as soon as possible. Having reliable and safe certificates proving vaccination, they will be able to move freely in currently restricted places such as offices or airports.”