Sukhi Jutla, co-founder of MarketOrders, sees a future where people are using and interacting with blockchain on a daily basis without even being aware of it. Ahead of her talk at Blockchain Technology World, we sat down for a quickfire Q+A
For you, what are the biggest opportunities offered by blockchain technologies?
Blockchain tech is still in its infancy and I think we have yet to realise its full potential. That’s what makes this space so exciting as there are still so many opportunities and possibilities to be explored.
The first viable and respected use case of blockchain is Bitcoin and it has proven that blockchain has a space in the financial and payments world. This is only one industry that has been explored.
The financial world is a longstanding and established industry but it has now become disrupted by blockchain tech. Therefore any industry has the potential to be distributed in the same way but via different channels.
The biggest benefits this tech provides is in eliminating the middle man in transactions. This means processes can become more efficient which can drive down costs.
The way products and goods are distributed can be totally reinvented. At MarketOrders, we are developing a blockchain based solution for the movement of gold and diamond jewellery products along the supply chain.
How can we ensure products contain a certain amount of gold? How can you prove to the consumer your diamond is truly conflict free? These are the questions we are building a solution for.
What advice can you give to companies looking to integrate blockchain solutions?
Many established businesses are sceptical about blockchain. However, research provides strong evidence that blockchain technology could transform existing business models and invent new forms of business in a profound way.
So if businesses are open to exploring new ways of doing things this can be a great opportunity to discover better business models that could also create and generate new ways of doing business.
My advice to companies looking to integrate blockchain solutions is to keep an open mind. To experiment and to not be afraid of exploring blockchain.
Almost any industry that operates with a middleman is going to be fundamentally disrupted, so if you operate in this space it’s important that you are a part of this new blockchain based landscape and to co-create the new future rather than getting pushed out of it.
What are the key pitfalls that businesses need to consider in implementing blockchain solutions?
As we are still in the infancy of this tech it’s difficult to see the true limitations of blockchain when we have yet to explore its furthest boundaries.
Due to this lack of clarity, there are questions around points including network size. Is the network large enough to accommodate a growing number of transactions and is the network robust enough?
Then there are questions around data quality- the data being recorded onto the blockchain can be prone to human error. This is one area that will always be susceptible to errors as humans can make mistakes!
Then there is the need to re-skill your taskforce with the new technical skills required to create blockchain solutions such as engineers and developers who can create smart contracts, mine and create tokens and coins.
What can the industry do to support the scaling of DLT adoption in the enterprise?
The industry needs to come together willingly to cooperate, knowledge share and see how they can collectively improve the industry. This can only be done with a mindset of sharing and abundance and truly wanting to deliver products that deliver real value to their customers.
I would encourage the industry to keep an open mind and to experiment with the different ways blockchain can change how processes and the business, as a whole, is run. More importantly, I would encourage the industry to be open to new ways of doing business and having the courage to implement changes as customers needs are ever-changing and blockchain provides a good opportunity to ensure we are still putting the customer at the heart of our business.
How do you see the blockchain landscape evolving over the next 5 years?
There is no question that question technology will become more mainstream as we discover and explore its potential. I can see a future where people are using and interacting with the blockchain on a daily basis and not being aware of it. Payments and transactions, especially those able to utilise smart contracts will take advantage of the blockchain.
I know in my industry, there is a great need to demonstrate the purity of gold products and trusting the people in charge of turning raw gold and rough precious stones into polished end products. The gold and diamonds industry is international by nature as gold is mined in predominantly developing countries and sold globally. Therefore there is an opportunity for financial payments and transactions to become cheaper to process and customers will appreciate being able to have a trusted way of knowing what they are buying.
