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BLOCKCHAIN
A distributed cryptographic ledger

PLATFORM APPROACH
Rapidly design, test and deploy applications

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
Drive digital change

Blockchain technology for Digital

Blockchain for Telco Transformation in the Telcom sector

FLOYD DCOSTA
@floyddcosta
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Institutions are experimenting and investors have poured
billions of dollars into Blockchain related firms
Having initially emerged alongside Bitcoin, Blockchain technology has swiftly diverged & continues
to independently gain traction within the enterprise space
Large institutions experimenting Blockchain USD billions invested in Blockchain start-ups

Ventures

Accelerator

FINANCIAL SECURITIES & TRADING

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

SUPPLY CHAIN & TRADE FINANCE

ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS

ESCROW & CUSTODY SERVICES

DIGITAL RIGHTS MANAGEMENT

LOGISTICS & ASSET TRACKING

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

OTHERS TO BE DETERMINED
AUDITING AND COMPLIANCE
CROSS-BORDER PAYMENTS

COLLABORATIVE ECONOMY
VOTING AND GOVERNANCE
REAL ESTATE & PROPERTY
CUSTOMER ACQUISITION &

FILE STORAGE & SHARING

IDENTITY MANAGEMENT

INTENET OF THINGS
INSURANCE

SYSTEMS
LOYALTY

LEGAL
Use Case /
Application

Record CURRENCY ASSETS CONTRACTS DATA P2P

Platform BLOCKCHAIN

Source: CNN Money, Coindesk, Citi Research

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Blockchain technology, by its very nature, lends itself to the
digital transformation journey of an enterprise
The blockchain, a cryptographic ledger comprising a digital log of transactions shared across a public or
private network, can address some of the pitfalls of digital transformation programs – id, security and trust
The first electronic value transfer protocol Key features of Blockchain technology
Blockchain

Open source Distributed Secure Decentralized Cryptographically Immutable Consensus

value transfer P2P network math-based Secure driven
protocol system

How a blockchain works

The transaction is
The block that can be
represented online
added to the chain, which
A wants to send as a `block’ The money moves
The block is broadcast to Those in the network approve provides an indelible and
money to B every party in the network the transaction is valid transparent record of from A to B
transactions

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From digital identity and tokenization to using smart contracts to automate businesses, Blockchain technology is swiftly establishing
itself as a key enabler of the emerging digitized enterprise environment
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Blockchain can be a powerful tool anywhere trading occurs,
trust is at a premium and there is a need for transparency
Blockchains have potential to radically change the future of transaction and transmission based industries.
And, today’s emerging ‘smart’ ecosystems are a prime candidate to be powered by Blockchain technology

Existing Value Chain Emerging New Models

Centralized Decentralized
• Legacy linear grids • Mesh networks / p2p grids
• Intermediary based • No intermediaries required
• Contracts • Smart contracts

The use of decentralized networks powered by Blockchain technology to facilitate the next generation of digital services could set up
the telecom industry for significant disruption - or crucial transformation, depending which side of the table you look at it from
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From providing Digital Identity and Authentication as-a-service
to IoT networks for connected devices in a ‘Smart City’ …..
……. telcos are well positioned to lead the way and usher in the next era of digital services; powered
by Blockchain technology

 Blockchain technology allows for

highly secure p-2-p self-managed
mesh networks with a large
number of nodes
 This makes it apt to facilitate m-2-
m connectivity for thousands of
IoT devices. Secure, cost-effective
and efficient
 With the emergence of 5G,
distributed technologies could
power the next generation of
digital services
 Telcos are well positioned to
become hubs for emerging digital
services and host industry-
specific marketplaces and
collaboration ecosystems
 Cryptographically secure,
decentralized and natively immutable,
Blockchain is starting to emerge as a
leading technology for digital identity
 Telcos are well positioned to offer
digital identity, verification and
IoT Digital Identity authentication as a service
Networks & Verification
Smart
S
City
Marketplace / Micro-payment  Blockchain technology provides an
Ecosystems Gateway effective low-cost solution for micro-
payments
 Telecom companies could leverage
these systems to enable
micropayments for music, mobile
games, etc as well as offer the same
billing capability to merchants

With a number of pilots underway, Blockchain, the revolutionary shared ledger technology, is swiftly beginning to grab the attention of
Telco execs as companies look to transform and reinvent themselves as well as the sector as a whole
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A 5-Step Methodology to harness the potential of
Blockchain technology within and beyond the enterprise

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Understand the Setup a Working Score and prioritize Launch design Evaluate
technology. Group (incl use cases. and development. Prototypes. Pick
Study and Partners). Outline roadmap. Build Prototypes. Leaders. Move to
evaluate impact. Identify potential Setup a Lab (with a Test Use Cases. Mainstream
Secure exec use cases team, processes Deployment (in a
sponsorship. Validate fitment (in and the reqd. tech phased
overall strategy). infrastructure). approach).

 Perform a comprehensive assessment of opportunities from a business, technology, and the legal standpoint of using
blockchain technology
 Set up a lab. Start small. Begin with select processes that could be showcased to a wider audience to highlight benefits
and prime adoption.
 Evaluate. Invest in technology and expertise related to blockchain. Secure alignment. Press for industry-wide change.
 Collaborate and work together to design solutions for specific use cases and processes. Form consortia and work with
regulators early in the process.

A structured approach will help organizations to explore possibilities, experiment with the technology, and develop innovative
blockchain-based solutions quickly, in a cost effective way
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4-Considerations to help move blockchain experiments
from the lab and towards mainstream deployment
Blockchain technology needs to fit into the enterprise IT fabric and be integrated with core systems
and processes

Isolated, Disconnected. Standalone or one- Independent, single-

Current
independent Detached from core off transactions industry network
State experiments between two blockchains
systems
department /
enterprises

Part of the overall Integrated with and Inter-departmental, Ecosystem

Need business strategy leverage the Inter-agency, as collaboration
and Digital extended enterprise part of an enterprise platform with
of the Transformation IT landscape consortium / synchronous real-
hour network time processing for
global value chains

Participation in industry consortia and engaging with regulators early in the process to collaboratively design solutions for specific use
cases (especially inter-institutional ones) will help bring the solution swiftly and more effectively to deployment
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Take The First Step: Identifying the right pilot use cases will
highlight the potential of the technology to all stakeholders
Blockchain make for a robust distributed transaction
Blockchains are best suited for situations where there is a
infrastructure, well suited for collaboration within and
distinct need for a select set of values
across institutional boundaries

Transparency
Intra-institution

Security Collaboration Inter-institution

Disinter- Trust
mediation

Between fully centralized and fully decentralized lies a middle path – a permissioned distributed ledger - allow semi-trusting parties to
securely share information among themselves and interact directly with one another without a co-ordinating intermediary