Table of Contents

Cryptocurrency’s Original Purpose - Finance
Other Applications of Cryptocurrency
Monetary Assets Management
Smart Contracts
Content Marketing
Internet of Things (IoT)
Identity Security
Transparent Fund-Raising
Transparent Electioneering
Medical Informatics
Logistics
Renewable Energy
Conclusion

Cryptocurrency and Blockchain technology are often mentioned in the same breath, and millions of people in over 150 countries enjoy their applications in finance and investment. The application of Blockchain technology yielded over 5000 cryptocurrencies, including the first decentralized cryptocurrency - Bitcoin. Its sensational impact on our world's financial landscape has earned it a market cap of over 1 trillion USD - what an economic marvel! According to Accenture, applying this distributed ledger technology - Blockchain can help the world's largest investment banks save a whopping 8 billion USD per annum. 

Already, Blockchain's applications have exposed the flaws in our traditional banking systems. And now, they are on the move for wider applications - a more diverse usage in other industries.

This article will investigate ten incredible applications of cryptocurrency. Let us first examine the most prominent - finance.

Cryptocurrency’s Original Purpose - Finance

Since Satoshi Nakamoto introduced the first Blockchain database, cryptocurrency has found its most effective use in finance and investment. Cryptocurrencies are exchanged, bought, held, and used to pay for goods and services, while Blockchain validates and records all these activities. 

Today, the roles of cryptocurrency and Blockchain in business have evolved. They are adopted by major companies and organizations around the world. Even governments are starting to show interest in the technology, with Canada launching its official cryptocurrency, MintChip, in 2012 and China commencing tests of its digital yuan or e-CNY in 2020. Going into the future, cryptocurrency is poised to revolutionize the business scene further. You can read more about that here. (#link to the B4biz Blog article about cryptocurrency predictions)

Other Applications or Use of Cryptocurrency 

Now let's examine ten other powerful applications of cryptocurrency.

This sector involves the management of one's assets, be it investments in a company or monetary assets in a financial institute. So what problem is cryptocurrency solving here? Banks and other companies use cryptocurrency and Blockchain to allow their investors and clients to transfer funds across borders without the associated restrictions and hurdles.

SwissBorg and J.P. Morgan are two companies exploiting cryptocurrency to this end. For this purpose, SwissBorg created its tokens and distributed them to investors to manage their assets. In like manner, J.P. Morgan created its cryptocurrency, JPM Coin, to allow its clients to transfer their funds held in deposit in J.P. Morgan banks around the world. 

Smart contracts are like regular contract agreements. However, smart contracts take away the middleman and increase accountability when compared to conventional contracts. 

Smart contracts are being adopted in major sectors, from medicine and healthcare to real estate. For example, Propy, a real estate marketplace running a decentralized title registry system, allows immediate title issuance using Blockchain. The marketplace also allows its users to purchase properties using cryptocurrency. BurstIQ is a Colorado-based company providing Blockchain solutions for the healthcare industry. Using smart contracts, they help doctors and patients transfer sensitive information securely while determining the kinds of information that can be shared.

B4biz’s very own Z4REAL platform, launching shortly, brings revolutionary access to this space as well, by helping buyers, vendors and agents navigate the complicated world of crypto-centric real estate purchases and opens the gates to an incredibly attractive market for all parties.

Traditional marketing methods are becoming irrelevant in a world where news and other written content are consumed digitally. To find more relevant ways to market content, publishers and advertisers are turning to cryptocurrency. How does that work?

Advertisers and publishers now subscribe to pay-per-article bidding. They can pay to have their ads appear above an article that a target audience member consumes on a publishing site. Payments are in the form of a proprietary cryptocurrency known as Engagement Token. For a better experience, the token's traceability allows advertisers to access valuable analytics such as engagement and use the insight accordingly.

The prevalence of so-called smart appliances today raises security concerns for many. For example, if your refrigerator, fitness tracker, and thermostat are connected to the internet, how long will it take hackers to steal your information from these devices? This security problem has now found an airtight solution in cryptocurrency and Blockchain.

Blockchain's transparency and near-invulnerability to cyberattacks add an incredible layer of security to IoT devices. Xage is one such solution that provides software to run IoT appliances in the transportation, energy, and manufacturing industries. In addition, Xage's platform can even self-diagnose and repair security breaches.

A survey by the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) in 2017 revealed that 1 in 4 Australians have been victims of identity crime at a point in their lives. The survey also revealed that the annual economic impact of identity crime exceeds $2 billion. 

Now, companies are coming forward with Blockchain-based solutions to the problem. For example, storing social security numbers, birth certificates, vaccination cards, and other sensitive information on a decentralized Blockchain ledger. This will make such information secure and impossible to steal. 

IBM Digital Credentials is one provider of such services. The solution provides organizations and individuals with a secure hub for credentials accumulated over their lifetime. 

Another innovative application of cryptocurrency takes advantage of its transparency. For example, people try to raise capital to fund ideas, services, and products through IndieGoGo or GoFundMe. Now, startup leaders are using cryptocurrency to raise the funds they need. In addition, cryptocurrency makes it easier to collect and donate funds and eliminates the risk of funds leaking.

Battling electoral fraud is another innovative application of cryptocurrency. Blockchain-based voting platforms are popping up all over the place with the promise that they would provide complete transparency and increased security to the voting process. Democracy Earth is one open-source solution looking to combine cryptocurrency and the democratic process. Another mobile voting platform, Voatz, aims to increase voter participation by applying biometric encryption, thus mitigating the fear of hacking and other electoral malpractices.

The field of medical informatics has always been riddled with ethical issues concerning patient information collection and transfer between clinics, doctors, and caregivers. Often, doctors and caregivers have a hard time administering care for patients because of the highly fragmented medical information available to them. 

Blockchain is now being exploited as a viable solution to combat the fragmentation, inappropriate collection, theft, and sharing of patient information. Patientory is one such application that sought to consolidate patients' medical information and records in one Blockchain-secured database. With the app, doctors can easily find a patient's prior medical history, thereby increasing the accuracy of diagnosis and improving the quality of care provided.

As a result of the large number of companies involved in the logistics business (there are 500,000 in the United States alone), the industry is not transparent. As a result, data siloing is always present in the industry, prompting innovative companies to exploit the possibilities of applying cryptocurrency and Blockchain to solve the problem.

Blockchain allows the tracking of data and sources throughout the supply chain. Hence, using it in the logistics business will enable a greater level of transparency. Besides, using cryptocurrency will help streamline operations from the greater degree of automation it introduces, thus saving the industry a lot of money. 

Logistics giant DHL is a leader in applying cryptocurrency and Blockchain to the logistics and shipping industry. DHL is currently working on using a blockchain-based ledger system for all its operations. 

Yes, cryptocurrency can now help you go green. Take the Brooklyn Microgrid, for instance. The project aims to allow residents who already have solar panels to sell some of the generated power through the app to other residents who don't have panels. Thanks to Blockchain technology, the system is completely transparent and decentralized, and thus completely controlled by the people.

Conclusion

There you have it! These are our top 10 picks of the most innovative applications of cryptocurrency today. This list is by no means exhaustive; there are many other uses of cryptocurrency and Blockchain today. As time goes by, we can only expect the technology to get more usage. The question, therefore, is, "Which of these uses of cryptocurrency are you implementing in your business?" Get a head start today and future-proof your business. Why not join B4biz and enjoy the rewards of this technology. As a consumer, you can sign up immediately and enjoy $20 AUDZ credited directly to your account. As a business, all you need to do is provide your business details for advertising within the directory. After that, you'll enjoy the opportunity to earn in AUDZ. Remember that you can always withdraw your AUDZ earnings in AUD. So register now and make the future mean today!