Blockchain Papers

Veena

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has transformed the fintech services and created a robust business canvas elevating various personalized and automated services with lightning speed satisfying ever changing needs of a person and market. AI triggered financial models and Chatbots are changing the investment environment in India. The quantum computing enabled with the AI is able to design tailor made risk management models in the financial services front. On the other hand, AI is empowering the fintech models face the challenges of frauds and cybercrimes. Automated documents and know your customer verifications, e signatures, faster clearings are some of the inventions in the Fintech arena supported by AI driven technologies. Credit score calculations and data maintenance of customers, identification of risks in finance and credit portfolios are other tools minimizing the frauds in lending portfolios of the banking and non-banking institutions. Market, investors behaviours, funds-flow trends’ analysis are other important operational efficiency tools that the bankers enjoying. The decentralized platforms, mechanized and smarter modes of financial services designed by the technology are contributing to the growth of the financial services including the insurance, capital markets. Banking services blessed with technological inventions are transforming the traditional banking into new-age businesses by reducing the operational cost and minimized operational time. The digital payments, real time credit of cheques, UPI payments are contributing for secured transactions, faster mode of authentications, encryptions and many more. The dependence on natural human resources is becoming less even after with expanding base of customers and variety of financial services. Anytime, anywhere banking models, digital platforms, and digital channels dedicated for the financial transactions are other contributions of the technological developments. The Fintech is witnessing a remarkable transformation with the induction of AI and other technologies into designing, operational and distributive models of financial products. Inventions in this field of financial sector are continuous. Emerging computing technologies are adding value to fintech facilitating faster developments in the services sector and contributing the growth of the economy.

Shazpreet Kaur, Anjani Srivastava, Kirti Khanna

PurposeThe enhanced consolidation of cloud accounting models within geographical boundaries of India has established latest standards in financial auditing, reporting, compliance procedures and virtual accessibility. Nonetheless the legal framework in the nation is evolving simultaneously to accentuate audit trails, nationalized storage of data and sovereignity of data. Latest modifications under the companies act 2013; the company’s fourth amendment rules and the new policies issued by RBI for data localization have radically shifted the compliance framework for all the accounting professionals and the service providers in the country. Regardless of the mounting academic discussion on adaptability of cloud accounting around the globe, meagre research has highlighted hoe nationalized legal requirements have modified the framework infrastructure, risks involved and acceptability of accounting professionals in india which will be investigated in this study. This study will further identify the pros and cons for adoption of cloud accounting and will come out with suggestive cloud accounting models for Indian scenario. Design/Methodology/ApproachAn empirical and analytical research design has been adopted for the study and snowball and convenient sampling has been used for primary data collection..A sample size of 140 has been calculated using G-power. The research is confined to chartered accountants of agra district to whom a well structured questionnaire was sent using google forms.stastical tools used in this study is chi square test. FindingsCloud accounting is a tremendous shift towards triple entry system wherein a transaction is verified by a third party using cryptography and blockchain technology thereby increasing authenticity and trust by piling all entries in a public ledger. As a result of this more businesses are adopting virtual workforce models. Introduction of cloud based models in accounting profession has enhanced the roles of key processing indicators in the business.Cloud technology magnifies employees networking and association thereby increasing efficiency and effectiveness. Chartered accountants who will accept this change will have new opportunities open for them and those who will look at this technology with ostrich approach will be left behind. OriginalityThe findings will be valuable for further research work to be done in this area. The findings will help various researchers, chartered accountants, accounting professionals etc to understand the implementation of cloud accounting in developing countries like India and to understand in depth the implementation and adoption of cloud based accounting in the Indian scenario.

Nikhil Belavadi

Research methodology This case was developed using secondary research methods. Information was collected from publicly available sources including company annual reports, investor presentations, regulatory publications, analyst commentary and reputable media outlets such as Bloomberg and the Financial Times. Industry reports from consulting organizations and international institutions were also used to contextualize developments in the global fintech ecosystem. No primary interviews or confidential company data were used in preparing this case. This case contains no disguised information; all organizations, individuals, financial data and events referenced are real and drawn exclusively from publicly available sources. As this case was developed entirely from publicly available secondary sources and involved no human participants, institutional ethics review board approval was not required. This case offers a distinctive contribution to the published teaching case literature on fintech strategy and platform renewal. While existing cases on fintech strategy tend to focus on a single dimension of disruption, such as Stripe’s developer-led payment infrastructure, Apple’s device ecosystem lock-in or the regulatory challenges facing individual cryptocurrency platforms, this case uniquely combines three simultaneous strategic challenges within a single narrative: the deployment of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled commerce capabilities, the early-stage integration of stablecoin infrastructure through PYUSD and the organizational complexity created by a decade of acquisition-driven expansion across Venmo, Braintree, Honey and Xoom. No published case in the fintech or platform strategy literature, to the author’s knowledge, addresses this particular combination of AI governance, digital asset experimentation and acquisition integration fragmentation within the context of a large, regulated incumbent facing embedded finance disruption. This case therefore provides a pedagogically distinctive vehicle for exploring strategic renewal in digitally regulated industries. Case overview/synopsis This case places students in the position of Alex Chriss, the newly appointed Chief Executive Officer of PayPal, as he prepares for a critical board strategy review in October 2024. Despite leading one of the world’s largest digital payments platforms, processing over $1.5tn in total payment volume annually and serving more than 430 million active accounts globally, Chriss inherited a company under significant strategic pressure. Revenue growth had slowed, share price performance was deteriorating and analysts were increasingly describing PayPal as a mature incumbent rather than a platform innovator. The organizational inflection point is a dilemma with no comfortable resolution. Chriss must choose a strategic direction to present to the board ahead of PayPal’s quarterly earnings announcement, but every available path carries a different form of risk. Moving aggressively into AI and decentralized finance offers innovation momentum but risks operational disruption and regulatory overexposure across dozens of regulated markets. Consolidating the core platform is operationally safer but risks confirming the narrative that PayPal has lost its competitive edge. Pursuing fintech partnerships accelerates capability building but reduces strategic control. Leading on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and responsible digital finance builds long-term legitimacy but delivers limited near-term growth. Investors want visible transformation. Merchants need stability. Regulators demand discipline. Employees are already stretched from restructuring. No single option satisfies all of these demands simultaneously, and PayPal’s resource constraints mean Chriss cannot pursue all four directions at once. The case draws on dynamic capabilities theory, the resource-based view, platform ecosystem theory, stakeholder theory and embedded finance literature, and requires no prior knowledge of fintech or payment systems. Complexity academic level This case is appropriate for MBA and Executive MBA courses in strategic management, innovation management and financial technology. It may also be used in final-year undergraduate courses addressing platform strategy, digital transformation or fintech ecosystems. The case is suitable for both in-person and online classroom delivery.

Faizah Alsulami

This study examines the current state of digital asset auditing and proposes a clearer future vision through a systematic review of relevant literature and prior studies. It highlights the fundamental differences between digital and traditional assets, explains the classification of digital assets and their close association with blockchain technology, and analyzes the existing accounting and auditing frameworks considering international standards and provides a brief overview of the status of Egyptian legislation. The study also discusses the evolving role of auditors and the main stages of the audit process in the digital environment. The findings indicate that rapid digital transformation requires the development of advanced auditing standards and methodologies, and that the adoption of data analytics, smart contracts, and continuous auditing, together with enhancing auditors’ technical and professional competencies, contributes to improving audit quality, transparency, and risk management related to digital assets.

Obani Chimaobi Desmond, Eneoli Queeneth Uchenna, Lucy Obiageli Agbasi, Chukwudi Umejiaku

This study examined blockchain technology's potential to enhance audit efficiency in selected service firms. Traditional auditing is often hindered by data manipulation, limited transparency, time-consuming verification, and high costs challenges that blockchain's decentralised, immutable, and transparent ledger system can plausibly address. The research assessed blockchain's role in improving audit efficiency, focusing on automation and realtime auditing, distributed ledger effects, and consensus mechanisms. Data was gathered through questionnaires, observation, and a technical readiness survey, and analysed using descriptive statistics, inferential statistics, and multiple regression. The study evaluated current auditing practices to identify the benefits and barriers of blockchain implementation, examining existing audit challenges, blockchain's capacity to resolve them, and the implications for service firms. Respondents were drawn from service firms with interest or prospects in adopting blockchain for audit activities. Findings showed marked improvements in audit accuracy, transparency, and overall efficiency, though adoption barriers, cost, and the need for regulatory structures were also identified. The study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on blockchain's practical application in auditing, offering guidance to service firms, audit practitioners, and policymakers on successful implementation. By addressing these challenges and leveraging blockchain's opportunities, service firms can achieve cleaner, safer, and more efficient audit practices. The research confirms that blockchain technology plays a significant role in enhancing audit efficiency within service firms.