Blockchain is 5 Years From Mainstream, Post-Trade Consortium Members Say

Nearly half of the members of a blockchain consortium focused on post-trade settlement see the technology achieving wider adoption over the next three to five years.

That's according to the results of a survey published today by the Post-Trade Distributed Ledger (PTDL) Group. The survey was conducted last autumn and polled its 45-strong membership.

According to the group, 48% of participants said that they see a three-to-five-year timeline for broader industry adoption. And while 29% estimate a shorter time scale (one to two years), the remaining 21% say they expect it could take five years at the very least.

The PTDL Group was launched in November 2015, backed initially by firms like the London Stock Exchange, CME Group, Euroclear, LCH.Clearnet, as well as banks Société Générale and UBS. Its membership has since grown.

When asked about the overall important of blockchain to their companies, 20% of members indicated that the tech was 'very high', with another 34% reporting that it is a "high' priority. The tech is a 'low' priority for the other 7%, according to the survey.

Jörn Tobias, a managing director for State Street, which is a party to the PTDL Group, said in a statement:

“The survey shows that blockchain could become mainstream in just a couple of years, with benefits such as better transparency, shorter settlement cycles and cost savings clearly identified by our members. The big barrier to growth, however, is seen as caution: fears over adoption and hesitation about embracing what remains cutting-edge technology.”

The survey also focused on potential benefits applicable to the post-trade space. Of those, operational cost saving was highlighted the most among group members, with 81% of respondents ranking it as the most beneficial.

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