According to the World Economic Forum, by 2027, 10% of world GDP will be reflected in blockchain. This means that advanced states in this area will strengthen their positions in the world economy. We decided to find out which countries are already leading the race in blockchain technologies.
Venture company Outlier Ventures, which was one of the first companies to invest in blockchain projects in 2014, is monitoring startups based on blockchain. According to their research, the first place in the number of blockchain start-ups is taken by the USA (38.9% of projects). Leading positions are actively supported at the state level. This summer in Washington there was a blockchain forum where all ministries and government agencies were present. The development of blockchain technologies and their implementation at the national level were discussed. The state allocates grants for the development of this technology.
For example, $100 thousand was allocated for the implementation of blockchain in the public library system, $2.25 million for blockchain start-ups was allocated by the Ministry of Internal Security of the country. Some of these projects are already being implemented. So, in Illinois, blockchain will be used to record data on newborns. Now this information will be in a decentralized system. Other announced plans include the transfer of medical data of citizens to the blockchain, the holding of state tenders, and the use of technology for defense purposes.
The European Union as an economic structure is acting more cautiously: for the time being, the Union is investing € 500,000 to investigate the possibilities of blockchain. At this time, a number of European countries are already actively implementing it in a variety of ways. In the Outlier Ventures’ study the second place in the number of blockchain start-ups is taken by Great Britain (16.7%). At the state level, this technology is getting strong support. Blockchain was included in the strategy of digital development of the country. The main focus is on culture, marketing, and sports. The relevant ministries will be responsible for supporting the initiative. In the near future – the introduction of a platform in the system of social payments (pensions, etc.). And now the blockchain platform can be bought in the electronic market created by the government service.
One of the most favorable places for active implementation of blockchain is the policy of the Estonian government, which created the first successful e-state several years ago. This allowed to translate such procedures as voting, census, citizenship and more than 4 thousand state services online. In 2016 this saved the country 2% of GDP on the paperless work of the state. Already the government is attempting to transfer the whole system to blockchain. In particular, medical records of citizens of the country will be part of a decentralized database in the near future. Another already functioning blockchain-service is an electronic notary, which allows foreign residents to certify documents from anywhere in the world.
Russia takes a big step toward the future. By the end of the year, plans are to formulate the concept of the “Digital Economy” program, in which blockchain takes a significant place. By 2019, they promise to introduce a regulatory and legal framework for the widespread introduction of blockchain at the state level. Government services on the blockchain platform are already being implemented on the blockchain platform in test mode by individual regions of the country.
For example, in Tatarstan, labor books will be transferred to blockchain, foreign passports and cadastral property records. Vnesheconombank (the National Development Institute of the country) is looking for different pilot sites for the use of blockchain. The corporation has already agreed on the implementation of blockchain with the Ministry of Health, plans to test the technology on the new pension system, and also provides grants for the creation of pilot blockchain projects for their further implementation at the state level.
Among the Asian countries, China is now a clear leader. The Central Bank of China has included the use of blockchain in the upcoming five-year plan for the development of the country. First of all, the sphere of social insurance will pass to the blockchain. The China Postal Savings Bank (PSBC), owned by the State Postal Service, together with IBM has implemented a commercial asset accounting system based on the blockchain. For several years, work has been underway to create its own crypto currency. In Chengdu, Hangzhou and other major cities in China, already operating blockchain techno parks, where the technology is not only studied but also used in practice.
Another Asian blockchain hub is Singapore, where many famous start-ups based on this technology are located. By the way, the Central Bank of the country recently announced the successful completion of the first stage of the Singapore dollar tokenization on the basis of the Ethereum blockchain.
The blockchain epidemic has not bypassed some African countries and Latin America. Moreover, if you look at the analytics of Google Trends for the request of “blockchain”, then the leading positions in the world are occupied by Nigeria and Ghana. The main goal for African states is to demonstrate the transparency of state policy, the absence of corruption and thus attract Western investment. So, for example, in Ghana, a project is currently being implemented to introduce a blockchain into the land use and cadaster system of the country. As for South America, here it is noted the activity of investors in the cryptocurrency market due to high inflation in the region and distrust of residents to the national currencies.
Leading from the point of view of the implementation of blockchain technologies are Canada, India, Germany, the Netherlands, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates and South Korea, to name a few. Globally, almost all countries of the world are ready for innovative technology and realize its importance for economic development. From the business point of view, it’s hard to tell who is the leader. The study of Outlier Ventures says that 28% of start-ups do not have headquarters, and their teams are distributed around the world.
“As a general rule, the teams implementing blockchain projects are also decentralized, just as information is stored with the help of the blockchain. For example, the project team CarTaxi (a mobile platform that combines all tow trucks in one application) is also dispersed around the world. Now we have three offices: in the US, China, and Russia. New points will open as they expand into new markets. But our main headquarters is, of course, in Russia. Its hard to tell which state is the leader in blockchain technologies since all major market players are anonymous and it’s hard to tell where their main geographical focus is. Nevertheless, Russia has all the chances to take the leading positions due to the obvious number advantage of our compatriots in the projects. The race is in full swing not only at the business level, but also at the state level, and the situation can dramatically change. The one who will have more resources for development and introduction of technologies will win.”
– says Andrey Shatilov, founder of CarTaxi.
