The Executive Guide to Blockchain (Using Smart Contracts and Digital Currencies in your Business) ||

Keeping up with fast evolving technology is a challenge that every business leader faces. As organisations start to wake up to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, it’s becoming more important than ever to be able to utilise and exploit new digital platforms. With the simple aim of demystifying blockchain for business leaders, The Executive Guide to Blockchain offers a jargon-free explanation and framework to better understand blockchain technologies and their impact on organizations. Enabling any business leader with or without specific computing knowledge to reap the benefits of blockchain whilst understanding the limitations, this book will empower you to: Identify opportunities for blockchain in your own business sectors Understand smart contracts and their relationship with the law Create a blockchain strategy and business case Implement blockchain technologies and maximise their potential. Written by experts in non-technical language, this practical resource can be applied to any industry, and arm you with the knowledge needed to capture the possibilities of digital business. Foreword by Sue Black Foreword by Professor William Knottenbelt Preface Why Us? Acknowledgements Contents List of Figures 1 Introduction A Driver for Change—Or a Bubble About to Burst? Giving You the Facts—Chapter by Chapter 2 Beyond the Hype Bitcoin: A Currency Born Out of Crisis Hitting a Bump in the Road Expansion Blockchain—A Success Story? What Are Cryptocurrencies? Are Cryptocurrencies Really Money? Blockchain Gets Smart Regulation 3 Cryptography for Busy People Why Cryptography? Brute Force Attacks Guessing a Key Staying Secure Shared Key Cryptography Public Key Cryptography Digital Signatures How Is This Relevant to Blockchain? Summary Frequently Asked Questions 4 Bitcoin and Blockchain: The Fundamentals What Is Blockchain Technology? Privacy, Anonymity and the Double-Spending Problem How Does Bitcoin Work? How Are Transactions Processed? How Do Miners Make a Living? The Case for PoW How Does the PoW Work? Orphan Blocks and the Longest Chain The Bitcoin Network The Forks or the Soft Touch of Humans Querying the Ledger Security in Bitcoin and the 51% Attack Who Generates the Addresses in Bitcoin? Has Bitcoin Fulfilled Its Original Purpose? Summary Frequently Asked Questions 5 The Rise and Rise of Cryptocurrencies How Do I Use Bitcoin? More Than One Way to Buy Your Daily Bread—Or Chocolates! Cryptomarket—An Overview Maintaining Privacy Payment Platforms Current Payment Systems Transferring Money in the Same Country Cross-Border Payments Payment Through Blockchain Summary Frequently Asked Questions 6 When and Why to Use Blockchain Who Is Using Blockchain? Blockchain as a Problem Solver Boldly Creating Trust Where None Has Gone Before When Blockchain Isn't the Answer Centralisation Versus Decentralisation Blockchain for Enterprises It Looks Like a Blockchain but ... Case Studies Timestamping Documents Supply Chain Management Trade Finance Compliance Land Registry Challenges Voting Systems Personal Data and the Blockchain Summary Frequently Asked Questions 7 Blockchain Strategy If Blockchain Is the Answer What's the Question? Step 1. Assessing Your Needs Step 2. Looking for the Solution Step 3. Finding the Technology That Works for You Step 4. Prototype Step 5. Validation Step 6. Scale Going Alone Summary 8 Smart Contracts How Smart Is a Smart Contract? Myth Busting and the Role of Smart Contracts A Brief History of Smart Contracts Where Does the Blockchain Fit In? AXA's Flight Delay Compensation Insurance How Does It Work? Company Funding Using Smart Contracts The Smart Contract of The DAO The Legal Side When Automation Isn't the Answer Smart Contracts in the Financial Sector How Will Smart Contracts Affect My Business? Summary Frequently Asked Questions 9 Regulation Why Regulation Is Needed ICOs Still Interested in Tokens? The Status of Cryptocurrencies Taxation Exchanges and Secondary Markets Technology Summary 10 The Future of the Blockchain What Does the Future Hold for Blockchain? Have Cryptocurrencies Peaked? Quantum of Solace, or a Major Threat to Blockchain? Will Central Banks Get on Board the Cryptocurrency Train? The Future of Cross-Border Payments The Dream of a Decentralised Society A Useful Resources Bitcoin Cryptocurrencies Enterprise Blockchain Glossary Bibliography Index