[ad_1]
While more than eight out of ten business and technology executives from around the world have blockchain initiatives in progress, only one in four of these states that their organization now has a fully active blockchain implementation or a pilot project in course. According to a new study, while the blockchain boasts a series of clear gains, regulatory uncertainty and trust remain major obstacles to broader business adoption.
Having taken over as the technology behind Bitcoin, blockchain initially made its presence felt in the financial sector. Since then he has made waves in the freight transport and logistics sector, while customers in every sector, from insurance to retail, push their consultants to ask for advice on how to exploit, or defend themselves, from its disruptive impact. Now, a PwC report has seen about 600 executives in 15 territories, of which 41 in the United Kingdom, have probed their development of blockchain and opinions on its potential.
According to research, the early dominance of developments in financial services in blockchain is still felt, with 46% of respondents identifying it as the driving sector in the next three to five years. Over the same period of time, the respondents identified a number of sectors that maintain the emerging potential within the blockchain arena. These include energy and utility with a rating of 14% as an emerging space, alongside health care in the same proportion and industrial production at 12%. 
In terms of where the blockchain gained the most solid foothold, meanwhile, the results are likely to be of little surprise. The first to adopt the United States and China are currently perceived as the most advanced blockchain users, with 29% and 18% of the respondents nominating the two superpowers respectively as market leaders. Looking ahead, the same two should still dominate, but within three or five years, the respondents have even ventured that the center of influence and activity move to China, with 30% expected to surpass the United States. Those who expect the US to maintain their top-dog status amount to 18%.
Elsewhere, the United Kingdom ranked at the bottom of a group of six other nations competing for leadership in the blockchain scene. At present, only 5% of respondents believe they hold a leadership position and fall for 2% in the next five years. In the same period, Australia (8%), India (6%), Denmark (5%), Hong Kong (5%) and Japan (4%) are expected to move away from the UK in terms of maturity. However, while the maturity of the blockchain should progress in the future, the road to success is by no means an immediate solution, with multiple obstacles that still prevent global companies from getting the most out of their adoption efforts.
Blocking blockchain
While a majority of 84% told Big Four that they had blockchain initiatives in place, however, only 25% confirmed that they had fully live blockchain implementations or ongoing pilot projects . Another more than half was still under development or research, with a 7% pause and a surprising 14% that admitted they did not yet have any blockchain involvement. This, despite the fact that most of these professionals will be more than aware of the various benefits often discussed in relation to the blockchain, including the greatest savings in terms of safety and efficiency . 
So what blocks the adoption of blockchain? According to the PwC conclusions, regulatory uncertainty and trust remain the greatest barriers to the adoption of a potentially revolutionary technology
48% of the participants cited regulatory uncertainty as one of the first three barriers to their blockchain efforts. Of these, 27% listed it as a high-level problem, as they remain unsure about how a rapidly evolving regulatory scene for the new technology could change, or even wreck its effectiveness in the future. At the same time, at a later time, 45% of lack of trust among blockchain users remains a major obstacle, although it is more in the hands of the companies themselves to change. 25% say that this is the biggest barrier they face for the adoption of the blockchain
Steve Davies, leader of PwC for blockchain, commented on the results, "Blockchain with his the same definition should generate trust, but in reality, companies face trust problems almost at every turn: creating and implementing blockchain to maximize its potential is not an IT project, it is a transformation of business models, roles and processes. a clear business case and an ecosystem to support it … Benefits can be compelling if organizations understand what their ultimate game is in the use of technology, and combine it with their design. "
To this end, PwC researchers suggest four key areas on which organizations can focus on improving their first steps in blockchain exploration and the development of internal or set-up platforms. regularly. First, analysts suggest, in line with what Davies suggests, that organizations must make the corporate case clear. Organizations can start small, but they must clearly define the purpose of the initiative so that other participants can identify and align it. 
Secondly, by building an ecosystem, participants can improve their chances of success by coming together from several companies in one sector to work on a common set of rules for governing blockchain. Of the 15% of respondents who already had live questions, the 88% were leaders or active members of a blockchain consortium. Companies should also deliberately design what users can see and do, improving their chances of success by establishing clear rules and standards for access permissions. Involving risk practitioners, including law, compliance and cyber security from the very beginning, can ensure control structures in the future that regulatory bodies and users can trust
Finally, with regard to nerves over regulatory uncertainty, PwC has suggested that companies would better play more proactive role in regulation rather than simply watching and waiting. In this way, companies can help shape the way the environment evolves and minimize radical changes.
