Blockchain Applications in the Public Sector: Investigating Seven Real-Life Blockchain Deployments and Their Benefits

Maciej Sobolewski and David Allessie ()
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David Allessie: Gartner Consulting

Chapter Chapter 5 in Blockchain and the Public Sector, 2021, pp 97-126 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract This paper analyses the benefits of blockchain technology for the public sector by looking at the outcomes of ongoing experimentation with distributed ledgers by governments. We use an evidence-based approach by analyzing seven pioneering projects in Europe in different stages of implementation, including two services in production phase. The study uses a structured framework for the case study analysis and a horizontal comparison on the functionalities, governance aspects, the usage, the technical aspects and the benefits. The study shows that current blockchain-driven innovation in the public sector mainly focuses on automation and the enforcement of transactions. The ongoing experimentation demonstrates the capacity of blockchain to reduce bureaucracy and costs of administrative processes, like record-keeping or financial management. However, a lack of standards and trusted hosting infrastructure as well as gaps in essential functionality are strong indications that technology has yet to mature. Without addressing scalability, governance and interoperability, blockchain will not become a transformative technology for governments.

Keywords: Blockchain; Distributed-ledger; Public services; Digital government; Notarization; Workflow automation; Smart contracts; Decentralized identity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:paitcp:978-3-030-55746-1_5

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-55746-1_5

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