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5,834 results · page 152 of 244
Bajeela Aejas, Abdelaziz Bouras, Abdelhak Belhi, Houssem Gasmi
No abstract is available for this record.
Elvira Albert, Pablo Gordillo, Alejandro Hernández-Cerezo, Clara Rodríguez-Núñez · 5 authors
Abstract The use of the Ethereum blockchain platform [17] has experienced an enormous growth since its very first transaction back in 2015 and, along with it, the verification and optimization of the programs executed in the blockchain (known as Ethereum smart contracts ) have raised considerable interest within the research community.
Fernando Zunzunegui
No abstract is available for this record.
Anastasia Niyazova, Aksana Askarbekova
Lately, more and more attention has been paid to the phenomenon of smart-contracts (SC) in legal research. The SCs have already found their application in many aspects of society life and are particularly common in the regulation of legal relations in the area of automated financial services, which may include lending, mortgages, insurance, etc., as well as in public services, including various types of voting, elections, document management, supply and storage. The practical dissemination of SCs is carried out without a conceptual approach in the legal regulation of this object, but also without a unified terminology. The science begins developing approaches to study of the legal nature of SCs and offers options for their legal regulation have been proposed, each of those, of course, has its benefits and disadvantages, which is explained by the multifaceted nature of this phenomenon. First of all, it means a qualitatively new level of functioning of a smart-contract where the technical component overlays on traditional types of legal relations. Both authors of the article used scientific methods such as analysis, synthesis, comparison, induction and deduction. Special attention is paid to different options for understanding the legal nature of smart contracts, proposed by European and domestic scientists.
Khushi Lath
No abstract is available for this record.
Mark C. Ballandies
Cryptoeconomic incentives in the form of blockchain-based tokens are seen as an enabler of the sharing economy that could shift society towards greater sustainability. Nevertheless, knowledge of the impact of these tokens on human sharing behavior is still limited and this poses a challenge to the design of effective cryptoeconomic incentives. This study applies the theory of self-determination to investigate the impact of such tokens on human behavior in an information-sharing scenario. By utilizing an experimental methodology in the form of a randomized control trial with a 2x2 factorial design involving 132 participants, the effects of two token incentives on human information-sharing behavior are analyzed. Individuals obtain these tokens in exchange for their shared information. Based on the collected tokens, individuals receive a monetary payment and build reputation. Besides investigating the effect of these incentives on the quantity of shared information, the study includes quality characteristics of the information, such as accuracy and contextualization. The focus on quantity while excluding quality has been identified as a limitation in previous work. In addition to confirming previously known effects such as a crowding-out of intrinsic motivation by incentives, which also exists for blockchain-based tokens, the findings of this paper point to a hitherto unreported interaction effect between multiple tokens when applied simultaneously. The findings are critically discussed and put into the context of recent work and ethical considerations. The theory-based-empirical study is of interest to those investigating the effect of cryptoeconomic tokens or digital currencies on human behavior and supports the community in the design of effective personalized incentives for sharing economies.
Abdullah Al Hussain, Md. Akhtaruzzaman Emon, Toufiq Ahmed Tanna, Rasel Iqbal Emon · 5 authors
The spirit of “blockchain technology” is a distributed database in which saved data is transparent, accountable, public, immutable, and traceable. This base-level disruptive technology can boost the security and privacy-related efficiency of various domains. As Bangladesh is currently aiming for sustainable development, blockchain technology adoption by the local researchers is growing robustly. However, in Bangladesh, the blockchain Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) is not yet well structured which is also limiting the perspective of local developers and researchers. Therefore, sectors like governance, healthcare, security, privacy, farming, information authentication, cryptocurrencies, internet architecture, data, and so on are unable to utilize the full potential of this technology. In this research, the authors conduct an in-depth review of such types of blockchain technology-related research articles that have been published recently and are also solely focused on Bangladesh. From 5 publishers (IEEE Xplore, ACM, ScienceDirect, Taylor & Francis, and SpringerLink) this study analyses 70 articles published during the year 2016-2020. The study results find the top 13 sectors where Bangladeshi researchers are currently focusing on. Those studies identify that the rigid policy by the government, scarcity of expert researchers, and lack of resources are the main reasons why Bangladesh is still struggling to accommodate blockchain extensively. In addition, published papers are mostly based on theoretical concepts without an appropriate implementation. Finally, this study will be a great resource to the developers, entrepreneurs, and technology enthusiasts to determine the strategic plan for adopting blockchain technology in Bangladesh or even to any other developing country.
Abubakar-Sadiq Shehu, António Pinto, Manuel E. Correia
Since its first introduction in late 90s, the use of marketplaces has continued to grow, today virtually everything from physical assets to services can be purchased on digital marketplaces, real estate is not an exception. Some marketplaces allow acclaimed asset owners to advertise their products, to which the services gets commission/percentage from proceeds of sale/lease. Despite the success recorded in the use of the marketplaces, they are not without limitations which include identity and property fraud, impersonation and the use of centralised technology with trusted parties that are prone to single point of failures (SPOF). Being one of the most valuable assets, real estate has been a target for marketplace fraud as impersonators take pictures of properties they do not own, upload them on marketplace with promising prices that lures innocent or naive buyers. This paper addresses these issues by proposing a self sovereign identity (SSI) and smart contract based framework for identity verification and verified transaction management on secure digital marketplaces. First, the use of SSI technology enable methods for acquiring verified credential (VC) that are verifiable on a decentralised blockchain registry to identify both real estate owner(s) and real estate property. Second, the smart contracts are used to negotiate the secure transfer of real estate property deeds on the marketplace. To assess the viability of our proposal we define an application scenario and compare our work with other approaches
Cindy Lu
In the current era of digital transformation, technological advances have altered the landscape of information transmission and human interaction. In particular, the rapidly expanding adoption of blockchain technology has introduced the idea of decentralization, with the goal of making systems more equitable and efficient. In the cryptocurrency and digital finance space, this means replacing a centralized authority with pre-coded smart contracts that community members may vote to alter, aiming to further democratize systems of governance. However, the social contract that traditionally informs the way in which governments rule societies today is called into question when the agreement is not between the physical entities of the state and the individual; instead, the hypothetical contract is made between the individual and the smart contract that the individuals have created to govern them. I intend to explore whether or not a successful and sustainable social contract can be found within a decentralized smart contract system that governs the digital world. Through analyzing advantages and disadvantages of decentralized governance and illustrating a working protocol in my case study of Tezos, I dive deep into the digital voting process and how participants interact with it. Additionally, I introduce the relatively new model of quadratic voting that has the potential to improve the governance process and eliminate weaknesses. Finally, I argue that decentralized governance by smart contracts works, and is ultimately sustainable due to its ability to adapt and upgrade in tandem with human participation.
Zhixuan Zhou, Bohui Shen
Cryptocurrency has been extensively studied as a decentralized financial technology built on blockchain. However, there is a lack of understanding of user experience with cryptocurrency exchanges, the main means for novice users to interact with cryptocurrency. We conduct a qualitative study to provide a panoramic view of user experience and security perception of exchanges. All 15 Chinese participants mainly use centralized exchanges (CEX) instead of decentralized exchanges (DEX) to trade decentralized cryptocurrency, which is paradoxical. A closer examination reveals that CEXes provide better usability and charge lower transaction fee than DEXes. Country-specific security perceptions are observed. Though DEXes provide better anonymity and privacy protection, and are free of governmental regulation, these are not necessary features for many participants. Based on the findings, we propose design implications to make cryptocurrency trading more decentralized.
Morris K. Odeh
No abstract is available for this record.
Nizan Geslevich Packin, Sean Stein Smith
No abstract is available for this record.
Luis Angel D. Bathen, Divyesh Jadav
Abstract The emergence of crypto currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum have shown the value in decentralized technologies. The idea of having 24/7 access to programmable money peaked the interest in the field, and as a by-product, came the realization that the same core technologies that enable programmable dog money, can enable highly-available DNS services, highly-available storage services, 24/7 asset exchanges, and peer-to-peer marketplaces to name a few. This paper explores the use of smart contracts in multi-cloud environments in order to facilitate business processes across multiple providers speaking different languages in terms of policies, best practices, APIs, and SLAs.
Fujian Zhu, Chunhai Zhang
In this paper, we work towards bank loans. This task is nontrivial due to the following problem: small enterprises and individuals have difficulties in lending, banks bear high risks, and the lending business is greatly affected by the subjective influence of staff. Towards this end, we propose a novel loan investment model and smart contract algorithm. Afterwords, we build an intelligent risk control evaluation algorithm based on deep learning. To justify our work, we implemented a distributed application that can run safely. In addition, using the data set of paipai loan, the accuracy of our intelligent risk control evaluation algorithm is 94.33%.
Eliza Mik
From a distance, smart contracts seem exciting: Unlike humans, who might opportunistically decide to deviate from the agreed terms, their code will execute “no-matter-what,” ensuring the terms are adhered to and the contract is performed. Smart contracts would thus seem like a valuable addition to conventional contracts. A perfect transaction technology, indeed! A closer analysis of the smart contract narrative and the relevant technical scholarship reveals a peculiar dissonance between how smart contracts are described and what smart contracts really are. Taking the unfortunate terminology at face value and analyzing smart contracts as if they were contracts in the legal sense might constitute a waste of academic time. Even if they constituted an improvement over existing transacting practices, would – or could – smart contracts still be contracts? Would they even belong to the same category of legal phenomena? Maybe the fundamental question is: what are smart contracts? To many, these questions may seem like unnecessary hairsplitting, typical of haughty academics. In practice, however, how something is defined and categorized has immediate practical implications. Sidestepping the overly optimistic narrative of “unstoppable legal innovation,” this chapter deconstructs the concept of smart contracts and aims to provide a more commonsensical and factual grounding for future legal analyses of this phenomenon.
Norbert Jesse
Competence in data management is fundamental for the survival of companies. In this paper we go beyond topics like data integration, data quality, data governance or data wrangling. The notion is to outline the conceptual approaches of blockchain technology and smart contracts as an innovative approach to sharing data and automating contractual processes between interested parties. Cryptocurrencies - with bitcoin the first and most prominent one – have become highly relevant on the financial markets. The underlying technology for crypto money follows a distributed ledger concept called blockchain. However, blockchain technology today amounts to much more than storing virtual money, having gained new ground with the capability to implement so-called smart contracts, i.e., software code as part of the chain. In this discussion we outline the concept of distributed ledgers and blockchain and outline fundamentals of smart contracts. Finally, proof of concepts and first applications exemplify the options that companies now have to enhance their business.
Michelle Pfister, Niclas Kannengießer, Ali Sunyaev
Abstract Token economy instances can be built on a variety of protocols, such as distributed ledger technology (DLT) protocols. DLT protocols are used to operate DLT systems that perform, in a decentralized way, several tasks (e.g., the prevention of double-spending) that are usually handled by central actors, such as banks. Using DLT can be subject to challenges in terms of interoperability between DLT systems (e.g., due to incompatible interfaces), limiting the dynamics in token economy instances, for example, regarding collaboration between organizations operating on separate distributed ledgers. Cross-ledger interoperability (CLI) systems can connect DLT systems. However, it is unclear how the degree of decentralization (i.e., technical and political) of CLI systems affects token economy instances that comprise multiple DLT systems. To better understand such effects, we describe patterns for the implementation of CLI systems and present our notion of political decentralization in token economy instances using CLI. We describe potential implications of CLI patterns and governance mechanisms on token economy instances. Drawing from those implications, we discuss balancing centralization and decentralization in token economy instances that comprise multiple DLT and CLI systems.
Davit Marikyan, Savvas Papagiannidis, Omer Rana, Rajiv Ranjan
The adoption of blockchain-based technologies by organisations can bring benefits in terms of firms' profitability, productivity and efficiency, making companies rethink their existing business models. However, as the technology is still developing and the research on the implications of the different types of blockchain networks (i.e. public, private, consortium) is scarce, their role in business model innovation requires closer attention. To address this gap, the paper provides a conceptual insight into the role of blockchain technology in companies with different value configurations by examining the technological conditions that can impact business models and probing the role of technology benefits in driving company value. The analysis contributes to the literature by discussing the business implications of innovative technologies and uncovering their positive and negative consequences for the value creation, delivery and capture activities. Such analysis sheds light on the functions of blockchains that have a differentiating impact on business processes. Also, the paper puts forward managerial implications by discussing the paths of business model innovation using blockchain technologies.
Zava Aydemir
No abstract is available for this record.
Valerii Yatsenko, B. Kovalov, Olexandr V. Kubatko, Mykola Oleksiiovych Kharchenko · 6 authors
Smart contracts are one of the digital technologies that have the potential to significantly alter the way market participants interact. It is emphasized in the research that a smart contract is a specialized computer protocol that allows negotiating parties to exchange assets between themselves: stocks, money, or property without involving a third party as an intermediary. It should be noted that smart contracts also have a wide area for use not only in the financial sector, but also in other sectors of the economy, and the global trend towards digitalization is one of the fundamental drivers of the development of this tool. The most recognizable technology for the operation of smart contracts today is blockchain. It is mentioned that blockchain guarantees the reliability and security of the concluded contracts in terms of their confidentiality, immutability, and permanence. Four basic stages of a blockchain-based smart contract were revealed. It is stated in the article that one of the most promising applications for smart contracts is the automation of the provision of banking services, such as supply chain financing, mortgage lending and small business lending. The automatic implementation of the full lending process, from application to credit risk assessment, mortgage renewals, title transfer, and mortgage servicing and securitization, can be facilitated by sharing borrower information and digital versions of multiple registries and title documents.It is emphasized that smart contracts have a number of advantages over traditional paper-based contracts. It's important to remember that no matter how advanced technology gets, there's always the risk of IT-system vulnerabilities. The future of smart contracts in banking was forecasted. Many banking processes and legal agreements will be substituted by blockchain-based finance solutions in the future; however the shift will be slow. Incumbent banking institutions are unlikely to completely relinquish control of their databases from unknown third parties. Most likely, groups of banking institutions will use authorized blockchains, and customers will only interact with trusted nodes, and not directly with the ledger.
Muhammad Shoaib Siddiqui, Toqeer Ali Syed, Adnan Nadeem, Waqas Nawaz · 5 authors
Virtual Tourism (VT) is a booming business with potential perspectives in the entertainment and financial industry. Due to travel restrictions, safety concerns, and expensive travelling the younger generation is showing interest in virtual tourism instead of traditional tourism. However, virtual tourism does not financially benefit the service providers as compared to traditional tourism stakeholders. An online system is essential to provide a central point of access to various tourism sites along with usage, permission, and payment control. In this paper, a secure blockchain-based broker service for users and content providers is proposed, which allows tourism sites to announce their virtual tours and provide accessibility and accountability. Meanwhile, it enables users to register, subscribe, access, and be billed according to their usage. The permission control module ensures authentication and authorization, while the usage control provides accountability to the predefined service level agreement. The transactions are stored on the blockchain to ensure the integrity of data and smart contracts are used to ensure automatic usage and permission control. An implementation on Hyperledger Fabric is provided as a proof of concept with performance measurements as a case study.
Agostino Capponi, Ruizhe Jia, Ye Wang
No abstract is available for this record.
Ahmet Faruk Aysan, İbrahım Musa Ünal
The increasing interest in Fintech, Blockchain, and Digitalization in Islamic Finance created a new area in the literature, requiring a systematic review of these academic publications. The scope of the analysis is limited to journal articles to understand the trends in the indexed journals. Results are categorized into three sections, Islamic banks’ digitalization, Blockchain and Crypto Assets research, and Islamic non-bank financial institutions’ digitalization. Islamic fintech has great potential mainly because of the overlapping norms of Shariah and fintech, making it easier to implement technological disruption into Islamic finance. Moreover, the trust shift to Islamic finance could be merged with the opportunities of fintech and increase the potential of Islamic fintech even more.
Hilary J. Allen
No abstract is available for this record.