Report: Two blockchain analyses reveal different visions for the future - Enterprise Times (enterprisetimes.co.uk)
There is no doubt that interest in blockchains as a technology is running high, nor that this is a global phenomenon. Two contributions, with very different considerations, illustrate this:


 That their analyses are different is not surprising. They approach the cryptocurrency topic from very different starting points.A New Model for a New CenturyThe following captures the essence of the RMIT argument: “The rollout of blockchain technology raises complex questions in economics, public policy, law, sociology and political economy.

What we call ‘institutional cryptoeconomics’ starts from a simple premise – the blockchain is not just a new general purpose technology, it is a new institutional technology.

“This may sound like a pedantic distinction, but the difference between these two conceptions is profound. General purpose technologies allow us to do what we already do better, faster and cheaper. Economists understand general purpose technologies (like steam power or the semi-conductor) as great engines of economic growth.

“There is no doubt that the blockchain is a general purpose technology, but it is much more. Rather, the blockchain is a new mechanism to coordinate economic activity and to facilitate cooperation between individuals. It opens up new opportunities for exchange, for collaboration and for building communities that were previously closed off due to high information costs and transactions costs.

Old thinking and new paradigmThey continue by drawing out a perceived difference between:

  • ‘old thinking’, essentially the traditional transaction model
  • the new paradigm, where the “blockchain breaks this relationship between size, opportunism and asset specificity”.

 For the authors, “blockchain breaks this relationship (between size, opportunism and asset specificity). … Institutional cryptoeconomics offers an exciting way to understand what features of the ancien régime we’re about to lose, and what might take its place.

The central bankers’ bank contributionThe BIS contribution focuses on...continue reading: https://www.enterprisetimes.co.uk/2017/09/19/two-blockchain-reveal-different-visions-future/
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    Francisco Gimeno - BC Analyst Very interesting analysis about the use of blockchain from different broad points of view. The conclusion is that, at the end of this paradigm cycle, blockchain offers solutions to practically everybody and that we are living in interesting times.