A brave new world? What impact will

distributed ledger technology have

on the financial industry?

We are living in an age of rapid change. The world today is virtually unrecognisable

from the world of even

25

years ago. The internet has changed the way we

communicate, the way we shop, the way we learn, the way we listen to music, the

way we store infor

mation

–

frankly, the way we live. It has become possible to

exchange information instantaneously with almost anyone, anywhere, any time.

In response to this level and speed of change, standing still is not an option. We

have seen the impact on businesses

that adapt and those which don’t. For example,

the technical revolution hit the taxi industry when mobile app technology allowed

people with a vehicle and free time to offer taxi services. Technical disruption is also

changing the car industry as IT

visio

naries

have set out to develop cars that can self

-

park and self

-

drive using electrical engines and tablet technology.

Companies that

shy away from technological changes and do not adapt to the new digital

environment risk falling by the wayside.

The financ

ial industry is also experiencing these changes and financial companies

are looking at new technologies as they emerge and deciding whether or not to

embrace them and the new opportunities they provide.

One of the more recent technological developments tha

t holds potential for the

financial industry is distributed ledger technology, or DLT. This article looks briefly at

what exactly this new technology is and what the potential implications are for

Europe’s financial market infrastructure.