Last year Paragon presented a number of times on 'emerging technologies' and in particular blockchain was a theme that was highlighted often, with its potential usage for global industries made very apparent.
One such benefit is the transparency that blockchain provides and an example used for this can be found within the financial world of which a sub sector is not-for-profits/charities. Imagine donating money to a cause and being able to see exactly where every one of your pennies has gone to...
With an eco-warrior & millennial hat on, this is great and would encourage me to donate more knowing that my efforts to help the causes I care about are publicly held accountable for and traceable from donation to source...BUT with a corporate and business succession hat on there could also be negative repercussions which might have been initially overlooked...
All businesses, even not-for-profits and charities, must remain competitive to stay relevant and at the best of their ability, so what happens when money donated can be traced going into the companies marketing efforts rather than direct to the cause? Would that not upset an individual who is under the impression that their donations were assisting something or someone rather than lining the pockets of the company taking their money?
This Forbes article cuts to the core of these potential issues...
But in some cases, particularly transactions between and among the growing number of non-profits, aid contractors, VC firms, and others who present themselves as working for social and environmental impacts in the Third World, it might be worth asking the counter-intuitive question: is full transparency what they really want? Is it desirable to have a system that can generate a chain of custody for each item in the supply chain, where each moment in a contractual relationship is visible?
