The innovative technology of blockchain holds the potential to bring about drastic changes in the traditional financial services industry. As a decentralized distributed ledger with change-resistant properties, blockchain ensures the security and scalability of transactions amid a highly transparent environment. Although this technology has use cases in many industries, its cost-effective and fast structure is especially beneficial in the global financial system.
Here’s what you should know about the expanding role of blockchain & cryptocurrencies in the financial sphere, and how they could streamline this sector by minimizing the tedious procedures. Blockchain’s use cases in the finance industry cover, but are not limited to, the following five major departments:
Banking and lending
Traditional banking involves lengthy procedures related to identity verification, credit scoring, and funds distribution. Blockchain can offer proficient banking and lending solutions by reducing fraud risk and settlement times. To note some of its applications in the banking space:
- Blockchain can guarantee the legitimacy of financial and personal identification documents necessary for banking procedures.
- It can augment the viability of collateralized loans by enacting a high-regulatory architecture with real-time traceability.
- Blockchain can perpetuate automated interest payment management and issuance of funds.
- Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) can facilitate the credit scoring process by efficiently analyzing user data across the network.
Money transfers and payments
Global payments and cross-border money transfers have to go through several intermediary parties, resulting in increased costs and execution time. Blockchain can radically transform the payments system as it can slash processing times and reduce transaction fees.
Crypto banking and finance
Cryptocurrencies, the blockchain-based digital assets, are also taking the finance market by storm. The crypto finance sphere is extending its operations with several innovative services like swift payments, staking, and DeFi lending to excel the traditional banking functionalities.
Digital currency platforms now integrate interest-yielding accounts, credit cards, and collateralized loans, among other services. Crypto banking forums offer significantly higher APY (annual percentage yields) than standard banks and distribute loans by specialized crypto pools. Moreover, crypto trading is one of the most significant components of the financial crypto space, where millions of traders participate in the digital currency markets to acquire potential returns.
Insurance
Most of the time, insurance disputes tend to run for an extensive period, inflicting a toll on claimants and creditors. The probability of insurance fraud can be substantially reduced by utilizing blockchain technology as it allows:
- The employment of automated contracts, incorporating payout and risk thresholds, with the help of smart contracts.
- A transparent and fast verification of data, hence presenting quick insurance solutions.
- Automatic release of insurance payments.
- Authentication of documents and historical data to mitigate the risks of fraud.
Capital markets
The proceedings in capital markets are significantly constrained by strict regulations and longer processing times for issuance and settlement of funds. Blockchain offers practical solutions to the capital markets by:
- Removing the need for middle parties, thus lowering costs and shortening settlement times.
- Maintenance of a decentralized and digital system with no single point of failure and zero human error risk.
- Implementing smart contracts to automatically execute financial contracts after data verification across all networks.
