Spending on blockchain technology to double this year to $2.1B

Led by financial services, industries are ramping up spending on blockchain distributed ledger technology at unprecedented rates; 2018 will mark the move from pilot programs to real-world rollouts.

Spending by enterprises and other entities on blockchain networks is expected to reach $2.1 billion this year, more than double what was spent on the distributed electronic ledger technology in 2017.

The U.S. will lead the world in blockchain investments, accounting for 40% of spending, followed by Western Europe, China and the Asia Pacific region (not including Japan), according to a new report from IDC.

By 2021, spending on blockchain is expected to reach $9.2 billion, the report said.

Last year was considered a year of experimentations for the still-evolving technology, when businesses came to see both its benefits and the challenges it still must overcome, according to IDC.

That means 2018 a crucial year for enterprises as they move from proof-of-concept projects to full blockchain deployments, according to Stacey Soohoo, IDC’s research manager for Customer Insights & Analysis.

The industries expected to see the fastest growth in blockchain spending will be professional services, discrete manufacturing, and the resource industries. All are likely to show a better than 83% combined annual growth rate.

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Source: Spending on blockchain technology to double this year to $2.1B – Computerworld