This document provides an overview and summary of blockchain technology and its applications in India. It begins with an introduction to blockchain, describing its key features and how it differs from traditional centralized systems. It then covers various blockchain platforms and technologies, applications of blockchain in areas like supply chain management and land registration. The document also discusses cryptocurrencies, ICOs, the blockchain landscape in India, and challenges and the future outlook for blockchain in the country. It aims to help readers understand this emerging technology and its growing role and implementations in India.
2. 04Introduction to the Report
03Scope of the Report
01
11Introduction to Blockchain
21Features of Blockchain — Powered by Beint
32Leading Platforms and Blockchain Technologies
22Global Blockchain Activity
29Application of Blockchain
05History of Blockchain — A timeline
42Blockchain Mixed Model — Telegram Case Study
48Blockchain in Supply Chain
50Blockchain Use Case — Land Registration
52Cryptocurrency
55ICOs — Powered by Driveezy
59Blockchain In India
84Investors and Funds
90Government Adoptations
96Government Policies
103Challenges & Looking Ahead
106Bibliography
44Blockchain in Smart Cities
Table of
Contents
3. 01Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
Have you wondered why blockchain is so hot right now — across
countries and industries, founders and investors, governments,
corporates, and startups?
It is the popularity and transparency of crypto transactions that have
led developers and design thinkers to explore the wide applicability of
the underlying technology — blockchain.
The technology is capable of disrupting a number of
governance-related systems — think the blockchain-based voting
system, Aadhaar ID maintenance, land registration system, health
records system, and more.
India has witnessed some mega blockchain initiatives — IndiaChain,
BankChain, Blockchain District and more. However, even as some
blockchain startups have successfully closed fundings, India may face
a dearth of professionals skilled in the technology.
To crystallise the development blocks of blockchain in India, the
government needs to formulate a blockchain-related bill draft that also
brings clarity on cryptocurrencies and ICOs. Corporates are already
stepping in to invest in R&D while exploring tie-ups with innovative
startups in the space.
Collaborations and cross-sectoral experimentation, supported by a
strong regulation, is the way forward if India wants to start harnessing
even an iota of the massive potential of blockchain technology.
Pooja Sareen
Editor in Chief
Inc42 Media
Editor’s Note
4. 55 03Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42 Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc4255 Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42!" Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42!"
Blockchain is the technology of the moment in India — in fact, it
has been so for a while now. Blockchain and cryptocurrencies
continue to draw the attention of major organisations and the
government in 2018, as was the case in 2017. This despite the
current confusion and hype around the technology and a large
number of stories surfacing in the media on cryptocurrency and
ICO frauds, scams, and theft.
the confusion around this trending technology, and address its
for blockchain in India. It also aims to demystify blockchain and
cryptocurrencies for readers with limited or no knowledge of the
technology.
The report provides an introduction to blockchain technology, the
components of a blockchain system architecture, the need for
consensus models, elements of the systems, smart contracts,
It also elucidates current ongoing applications and the landscape
of blockchain adaptation in India, exploring the various initiatives
taken by the government to incorporate the technology to bring
more visibility into governance. The report further dives into
various projects being implemented by government think tank
Niti Aayog and Indian state governments to digitise land records
framework called IndiaChain.
Scope of the Report
5. 10 11Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42 Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
Fast Forward to Today
The total market capitalisation of cryptocurrencies hovers at around $293 Bn
today, with a single Bitcoin trading upwards of $5,000. Also, initial coin offerings
(ICOs) have exploded in popularity, drawing over $2 Bn in funding in 2017 alone.
Blockchain is a disruptive force transforming the way our data is stored, allowing
users to fully control personal details they would like to share in public. Leveraging
blockchain and its decentralisation feature may well be the key to protecting our
privacy.
highly centralised web, and reignited conversations around currency and value,
digital governance, and the fundamental structures and rails of the modern
Internet.
progressively adopted policies in support of blockchain technology and digital
efforts to drive blockchain from mere cryptocurrency investment speculation to
real-world implementation and countries such as India, the UK, South Korea, and
Dubai are actively exploring its applications in native use cases.
Internet was for publishing, where blockchain is going to disrupt
dozens of industries, one being capital markets and Wall Street.
- Patrick M. Byrne
Peer-to-Peer
No Central Authority
Dristributed peer-to-peer network ensures the
data integrity
Introduction to Blockchain
6. 32 Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
Ethereum
33Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
Lisk
Lisk is a blockchain application platform that was founded at the
beginning of 2016. Based on its own blockchain network and the LSK
(Lisk Coin) token, Lisk enables developers to create, distribute, and
manage decentralised blockchain applications by providing their own
sidechain connected to the Lisk network, including a custom token.
their blockchain applications.
Lisk is the brainchild of Max Kordek and Oliver Beddows, who, after
several years in the blockchain industry, saw a shortage of developer
adoption. With a vision to increase adoption of the technology, they set
out to make it accessible. They looked at common teething problems and
development.
Since 2008, when Satoshi Nakamoto invented Bitcoin as a novel electronic
peer-to-peer cash system free of a trusted third party, interest in the
cryptocurrency and blockchain has spiralled. Recognising its potential as a
revolutionising technology across industries, especially in banking and
passing day. Companies and startups are leveraging blockchain to offer a
independent nature offers organisations a viable solution to streamline their
operations and transfer of assets.
Leading Platforms and
Blockchain Technologies
computing platform and operating system featuring smart contract
(scripting) functionality.
platform. It can be transferred between accounts and used to compensate
and programmer. Development was funded by an online crowdsale that
took place between July and August 2014. The system went live on July
30, 2015, with 11.9 Mn coins “premined” for the crowdsale.
7. 54 Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
ICOs
An Initial Coin Offering, also commonly referred to as an ICO, is a modern
fundraising mechanism in which new projects sell their underlying crypto
Public Offering (IPO) in which investors purchase shares of a company.
ICOs are a relatively new phenomenon but have quickly become a dominant
topic of discussion in the blockchain community. Many view ICO projects as
venture-funding model.
Standard, which abstracts a lot of the development process necessary to
create a new cryptographic asset. Most ICOs work by having investors send
distributes an equivalent value in the new token at a later point in time.
There are few, if any, restrictions on who can participate in an ICO, assuming
global pool of investors, the sums raised in ICOs can be astronomical. A
fundamental issue with ICOs is the fact that most of them raise money
pre-product. This makes the investment extremely speculative and risky.
The counter argument is that this fundraising style is particularly useful
(even necessary) in order to incentivise protocol development.
What is an ICO?
Powered By
55Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
8. 103Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
“With all parties using the same ledger that directly captures all the metrics
of the transaction in digital form, there is no more need to translate legal
documents into metrics. Next to efficiency gains, the additional benefit of
blockchain is that every action creates a virtually immutable record which
ensures that the parties know exactly what is agreed, but also by who and
when the contract was approved and signed.”
Although the world is going ballistic about the adoption of blockchain across
industries and other areas, there are some formidable challenges ahead for
102
The principal challenge is lack of awareness about the technology, especially
in sectors other than banking, and an even deeper lack of understanding of
how it works, especially in India, where major aspects of businesses,
governance, and social life are yet to be digitised. As a result, people are
struggling to grasp the full potential of blockchain, which is hampering
investment and exploration of ideas in the domain.
Awareness
Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
Challenges & Looking
Ahead
— Mark Bloom
Global CTO Aegon
Working in a decentralised fashion, the sharing economy generates humongous
amounts of data as a result of the effort to keep a constant track of the assets, which
are seen passing through many hands on a daily basis. However, this is an onerous
and increasingly complicated task. Here is where blockchain can come in and help
address this imbalance.
Blockchain, in essence, facilitates the exchange of value in a secure and decentralised
manner, allowing individuals to coordinate common activities and interact directly with
each other, along with managing online transactions safely. Blockchain can, thereby,
prove valuable to sharing economy users by making it cheaper to create and operate
online platforms to enable shared services.
Since the blockchain is transparent and secure, its architecture can help accelerate
the adoption of yet another concept — the peer-to-peer sharing model. Ranging from
vehicles to apparel, consumers can rent expensive items rather than buying them
owing to the wider choice of renting options. This thought, if applied and used
effectively, is likely to increase utilisation of underused goods, and will reduce the
overall expenses borne by individuals in general.
The sharing economy is no more a concept, but quite a trend in India. The technology
has delivered positive results wherever it has been applied and with further
developments in blockchain, we can expect enhanced and consistent levels of
services in future.
Blockchain Can Help Capitalise The
Sharing Economy
9. 104 105Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42 Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
The problem with many current approaches to the technology is that people
are developing their own blockchains and applications to run on top of them. In
each industry, chains are therefore being developed by different organisations
with varying standards. This defeats the very purpose of distributed ledgers
and fails to harness its network effect.
Organisation
Indian business infrastructure is traditional and centralised and companies
started to turn digital only a few years ago. The advent of an infrastructure
such as blockchain represents a paradigm shift from the traditional ways of
doing things as it places trust and authority in a decentralised network rather
than in a powerful central institution. For most Indian companies, this loss of
control can be deeply unsettling.
Blockchains are something of a productivity paradox. The speed and
effectiveness with which blockchain networks can execute peer-to-peer
transactions comes at a high aggregate cost, which is greater for some types
the same tasks as every other node on its own copy of the data in an attempt
validating and sharing transactions on the public ledger are estimated to be
greater than half a billion dollar a year and rising.
Bitcoin also has notable transaction costs even though it was touted as being
seven transactions per second, and each transaction costs about $0.20 and
can only store 80 bytes of data.
Culture
Cost and efficiency
The technology has the ability to cross jurisdictional boundaries as the nodes
on a blockchain can be located anywhere in the world. This can pose a
number of complex jurisdictional issues, which require careful consideration in
relation to the relevant contractual relationships.
The principles of contract and title differ across jurisdictions and, therefore,
identifying the appropriate governing law is essential. However, in a
rules to apply.
While cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin offer pseudonymity, many potential
applications of blockchain require smart transactions and contracts to be
indisputably linked to known identities. This raises important questions about
privacy and the security of the data stored and accessible on the
shared Ledger.
was highlighted by Satoshi Nakamoto when he launched Bitcoin.
Jurisdiction
Security and privacy
10. 106 107Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42 Blockchain Technology Report 2018 by Inc42
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11. Credits
Inc42 is a new-age digital media platform which brings its readers all the important news, views,
developments, and insights on the startup and technology ecosystem of India. We decode the jargon,
make sense of the noise, and tell you what you need to know in a variety of formats — well-rounded news
stories, analysis, interviews, features, long forms, videos, and more.
the Indian startup ecosystem. Our special research and data-backed reports on the health of the Indian
startup ecosystem aim to help startups and ecosystem stakeholders be prepared for and emerge as
winners in the ongoing technology revolution in India.
Inc42 has published over 10 reports in the last year through Inc42 DataLabs, which is tasked with
producing detailed research reports covering diverse industries and startup ecosystem entities spread
across the 29 states and seven Union territories of India. The data from our DataLabs reports has been
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