Blockchain 2020: What’s Next?

Blockchain technology is becoming more mature as we enter 2020. Cryptocurrencies are settling down and becoming more mature. There are more coins and ledgers utilizing blockchain as a core technology for maximum security.

Transactional blockchain networks are also becoming more common. You can still pay for products using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, and all payments are processed faster and more efficiently than ever.

It is, however, interesting to see where blockchain technology will be implemented next, especially in 2020. So, what’s next for blockchain?

Edutech on Blockchain

The most immediate trend of blockchain utilization is affecting the education industry. Top names such as Suffolk University are already making their programs available online. You can, for example, pursue healthcare management degrees through online MHA programs.

The availability of online programs and degrees means a switch to a blockchain-powered education network is only a step away. Since blockchain provides ledgers with high integrity, elements of the online courses (i.e. grades, exam results, assignments, etc.) can be stored in a blockchain network.

Blockchain may also influence other parts of the education landscape. Among the most popular scenarios of implementation are:

• Using blockchain to store grades and exam results for students in public and private schools
• Blockchain powering the distribution of course materials and entire online learning platforms
• Education information security being enhanced using blockchain’s distributed nature
• The implementation of blockchain to decentralize education entirely

These may seem like big steps for edutech, but they are steps that some have already taken. It is only a matter of time before blockchain becomes a crucial technology for education.

Blockchain for Healthcare

Blockchain has some characteristics that make it fit the healthcare industry perfectly. The decentralized nature, the particular attention to security, the way blockchain maintains the integrity of stored information, and the flexibility of blockchain networks make the technology the perfect solution for electronic medical recordkeeping.

Today, healthcare institutions rely on cloud servers or on-premise hardware to store EMRs. Unfortunately, despite the high HIPAA security standards, the approach still presents some serious and unmitigated security risks.

Blockchain eliminates those risks completely.

• Instead of being stored in a database, EMRs are stored in a network without a single point of failure
• Stored EMRs can be tracked down to the very first entry with blockchain’s ledgering approach
• Blockchain itself is more efficient, which means it will lower the cost of maintaining large volumes of EMRs over time

Blockchain-Based Single Identity

Speaking of EMRs and personal information, there are talks about using blockchain to power a single-identity system in several countries. Japan and South Korea are the closest to a real implementation, but other countries also consider the flexibility of blockchain as appealing.

The banking industry is looking at blockchain for the same reason. By establishing a single customer identity and using blockchain to log transactions, better data integrity can be maintained for years to come.

Which of these possible implementations are the most exciting to you? The possibilities are endless for blockchain as a technology. Expect to see 2020 as the year when blockchain becomes more common in more industries.