We feel ecstatic that even in Covid times, we are trying our level best to convey sessions on various topics so that students could be able to cover some additional topics other than their syllabus. This time we had a session by respected Cyril Edmund Abreo, he delivered a wonderful session on blockchain and cryptocurrency.
Let’s go to the briefing of the session i.e; from the very basics of blockchain and cryptocurrency…
Blockchain technology was invented in the year 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto. A blockchain is a growing list of records, called blocks, that are linked together using cryptography. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a timestamp, and transaction data (generally represented as a Merkle tree). Each block is immutable, making it a good way to store data that cannot be altered once written. These blocks are managed by a peer-to-peer network
for use as a publicly distributed ledger. A copy of the entire blockchain can be found on each participating computer, also known as nodes. Individuals and organizations can register themselves and become data miners. Blockchain technology can have a lot of applications to solve real-life problems. It can be used to safely store secure public information, such as medical records of patients, land and property details, financial information on the usage of funds
, etc. It can have a big role to play in the retail sector in tracking the supply chain, in terms of tracking the source and all the distribution points that a commodity goes through. These are just a few areas, however, blockchain can be used anywhere where a ledger can be implemented to keep track of data, as a blockchain is an immutable secure ledger. The only disadvantage of blockchain is the high dependency on energy to run the nodes and the complexity of integration and implementation.
Cryptocurrency is a digital asset designed to work as a medium of exchange. There is no physical form. It is encrypted and stored in digital wallets. It works through a blockchain, which works as a public secure financial transaction database. The price of cryptocurrencies is influenced by:
1. Supply and the market’s demand
2. Cost of producing a bitcoin through the mining process
3. Rewards issued to miners for verifying transactions to the blockchain
4. Number of competing cryptocurrencies
5. Exchanges it trades on
6. Internal governance
Bitcoin is the first decentralized cryptocurrency released in 2009. Since then, there are many more cryptocurrencies that have been released.
References:
https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf
https://bitcoin.org/en/faq#general
https://bitcoin.org/en/faq#what-are-the-advantages-of-bitcoin
https://www.bitcoin.com/get-started/bitcoin-white-paper-beginner-guide/
https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/satoshi-nakamotos-bitcoin-whitepaper-a-walk-through-3e9e1dee71ce/
https://nakamotoinstitute.org/bitcoin/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EH6vE97qIP4Blockchain and cryptocurrency
About ISBR:
ISBR Business School, Bangalore-based, Top Class B School for PGDM or MBA, Consistently ranked as best B School in India, AICTE-CII Platinum Catagory, with multiple specializations.