Cutting Through the Hype

Blockchain technology has real, practical applications — but far fewer than the hype suggests. Most applications do not need blockchain. A traditional database is simpler, faster, and cheaper for the vast majority of use cases. Blockchain adds value only when you need a shared, tamper-evident, decentralized ledger among parties that do not fully trust each other. At Nexis Limited, we evaluate blockchain pragmatically — recommending it only when it genuinely solves a problem that traditional technology cannot.

When Blockchain Makes Sense

Blockchain is justified when ALL of these conditions are true:

  • Multiple parties need to share and trust the same data.
  • No single party is trusted to manage the shared database.
  • Data integrity (tamper-evidence) is critical.
  • Participants need to verify data independently without trusting a central authority.

If a single trusted party can manage the data (your company, a regulator, a trusted intermediary), use a traditional database. It will be simpler, faster, and cheaper.

Practical Business Applications

Supply Chain Traceability

Track products from raw materials to the end consumer across multiple independent supply chain participants. Each participant records their handling of the product on a shared blockchain — verifiable by all parties without trusting any single participant. Applications include food safety traceability, pharmaceutical supply chain authentication, and conflict mineral tracking.

In our Bondorix logistics platform, we have explored blockchain integration for cross-border shipment verification where multiple carriers, customs authorities, and receivers need trusted handoff records.

Document Verification

Store cryptographic hashes of documents (diplomas, certificates, contracts) on a blockchain. Anyone can verify a document's authenticity by comparing its hash against the blockchain record — without contacting the issuing organization. Our Digital School product has explored this for academic credential verification.

Digital Identity

Self-sovereign identity systems allow individuals to own and control their digital identity data. Identity credentials (government ID verification, employment history, academic qualifications) are issued as verifiable credentials that the individual stores and selectively shares. The blockchain provides a decentralized registry of credential issuers and revocation status.

Cross-Border Payments

Blockchain-based payment networks enable faster, cheaper cross-border transactions by eliminating intermediary banks. Stablecoin payments settle in minutes instead of days, with lower fees than traditional wire transfers. Particularly valuable for remittances and trade finance in South Asia.

Technology Choices

  • Ethereum / Polygon: Public programmable blockchain with smart contracts. Good for applications requiring public verifiability and decentralization.
  • Hyperledger Fabric: Permissioned blockchain for enterprise consortiums. Suitable when all participants are known and identified. Better privacy controls than public blockchains.
  • Solana: High-throughput public blockchain for applications requiring fast transaction processing.

Common Mistakes

  • Using blockchain as a database: Blockchain is terrible at storing and querying large amounts of data. Store data off-chain and put only verification hashes on-chain.
  • Blockchain for single-party data: If only your company reads and writes the data, blockchain adds complexity without benefit.
  • Ignoring the oracle problem: Blockchain guarantees data integrity on-chain, but if the data entered is incorrect, the blockchain faithfully records incorrect data. Garbage in, garbage out.
  • Underestimating complexity: Blockchain development is more complex and expensive than traditional development. Smart contract bugs can be catastrophic and irreversible.

Conclusion

Blockchain has genuine value for multi-party trust, tamper-evident records, and decentralized verification. But most applications do not need these properties. Evaluate honestly whether your use case requires a shared, decentralized ledger — and if a traditional database would solve the problem more simply and cost-effectively.

Evaluating blockchain for your business? Our team provides pragmatic technology assessments.