How Blockchain Technology Can shape The Future Post Covid-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on virtually all industries on a global scale, but the effect has not been consistent. While the current disruption will of course present challenges to the blockchain industry in the short to medium-term, it also has the ability to bring about a new step change in the mid and longer-term. It has the ability to provide help in the COVID-19 crisis and the road to recovery, blockchain can play a key role in accelerating post-crisis digital transformation initiatives and solving the current long-standing flaws that have been highlighted in the current system.

There are however some areas where blockchain can be used to combat the effects of COVID-19 and aid in the economic recovery process. These innovative use cases can demonstrate the benefits of blockchain to a wider audience and to truly bring it to the masses.

Contact Tracing

In these unprecedented times, having the right balance has to be struck between gathering data and privacy. Blockchain can be used to both gather and collect patient data more efficiently, monitor patients’ movements to ensure social distancing, and protect their identity at the same time. With blockchain there is no central authority so users are given control of their own personal data. They can then choose to selectively share information that is important for coronavirus mitigation efforts, whilst protecting their identity and other personal information.

A team of privacy experts in Europe have proposed a blockchain-based effort for COVID-19 contact tracing using Bluetooth. The solution will use decentralized privacy-preserving proximity tracing (DP-PPT), this is a protocol designed by a number of research institutions in Europe, to ensure user privacy and avoid data exploits.

A German tech company MYNXG has created a blockchain-based solution that creates mobile phone tracking while guaranteeing the users privacy. Governments and healthcare companies can then gain useful information via coronavirus tracking, while users can be assured that their personal information will not be made available.

Genobank, the decentralized biobank for storage of biodata, is building an application using the Telos blockchain platform that enables citizens to acquire anonymous coronavirus tests which can then be sent to organizations.

Supply Chain Management

The COVID-19 crisis has caused unparalleled disruptions across global supply chains. There are two key factors here in that many factories have closed down due to safety concerns but with a higher demand for goods than ever before for certain goods, especially medical supplies.

So what are the current issues?

• Physical hoarding which increases stress on economies around the world
• Measures to prevent hoarding of fuel supplies
• Increased cost of service delivery
• Default of banks that threatens supply chains

Solutions

• Listing platform for products and services tokens
• Tokens specify time of delivery of products and services
• Transferable and non-transferable tokens
• A marketplace for supply tokens

By tokenizing the supply chain rather than traditional out-dated methods we can revolutionise the current status quo.

Lykke supports industries in their transformation by empowering them to leverage the full potential of blockchain and new technologies with the Open Initiative.

Real Time Information System

There is a real need in the financial markets for aggregation and verification of financial data. This needs to be unbiased from examples such as global health data & statistics from the current pandemic right to the other end of the scale regarding market trends and economic data.

So what are the current issues?

• The need for unbiased and objective input across a broad spectrum of factors from health to economic and political factors for decisions at all levels.
• What are the trends? What are the risks? What are the changes that are happening?
• Negative Feedback Loops: increase in uncertainty leads to more uncertainty.

Solutions

• Digital data is ubiquitous; Everything is aggregated and verified decentrally.
• Meteo-like real-time forecasts of risk and trends.
• Software framework with a simulation environment.
• User interface with animations of forecasts - for everything.

In Conclusion

Lykke believes that the power of blockchain technologies offer great potential in a multitude of COVID-impacted outlines. With the Open Initiative launch, we are starting a call to arms to companies and individuals to come up with inspiring solutions to these problems to make Blockchain technology not just for the few but for the many.

It isn’t often in history that on a global scale we are faced with such unprecedented circumstances where new emerging technology can help shape the future for good and help people on a global scale more efficiently.