Blockchain transaction fees are the lowest due to their transparency and incorruptibility. A future where there is no need for third-party middlemen (the middlemen who charge high fees and add little value) is being called “the democratization of finance.” Many cryptocurrency exchanges, like this trading app, are safe and available online.
Censorship resistance in bitcoin and blockchain cuts out third-party middlemen (known as “intermediaries”) who charge high transaction fees while adding little or no value – often questionably executing business logic. Blockchain technology promises to eventually limit the need for these third-party intermediaries that take a percentage of each transaction.
The size of the blockchain:
As with any new technology, there are challenges and areas for improvement. For example, blockchain technology has a limited ability to scale, meaning that to perform many transactions, users will have to create blockchains (think of these as digital ledgers) that are much larger than what we currently have. Today, one of the most popular blockchains is Bitcoin’s blockchain which is about 350GB in size and will eventually reach an unwieldy 500GB, according to estimates by 2023.
Although a good number of incumbents are looking for ways to capitalize on this new technology without having to change their business models dramatically, there are many examples of existing applications that are “blockchain agnostic,” meaning that they could work just as well with other blockchains as they do with bitcoin’s blockchain. This new technology represents a paradigm shift from centralized trust to decentralized trust.
A clear example is how financial institutions are attempting to use bitcoin’s blockchain in the middle of their existing models. For example, they are partnering with bitcoin’s blockchain to store exchanges of value between banks and non-banks, provide cross-border payments, and provide settlement finality for international transactions.
Although traditional finance groupings like UBS have investments in several start-ups focused on using blockchain technology for financial markets, there is still a long way to go before mainstream financial institutions are willing to give up on their centralized trust models completely. Until then, we can expect a proliferation of “blockchain agnostic” applications such as those listed above.
How does censorship resistance of bitcoin and blockchain benefit businesses?
The “always on” nature of blockchain technology means it is always accessible. It can be beneficial for businesses and services ordinarily open to the public. For example, at any given time, customers can see a copy of their transactions and balances no matter what time they are or where they are. It provides a strong sense of transparency between businesses and their customers, creating new opportunities for customer retention, public relations, and word-of-mouth advertising while reducing the risks of fraud, data theft & tampering, etc.
Intermediaries like lawyers and accountants can be cut out of the equation, making transactions faster and cheaper. It eliminated the cost of investing in data storage and security while eliminating the need to pay fees to lawyers and accountants. Since the cost of transactions is directly correlated with the amount of data processed, third-party intermediaries can be cut out from “middleman” services that require consideration for each transaction. Anyone can see what blockchain technology does for them using publicly available technologies like Blockchain Explorer, Blockchain API, or How Blockchain Works. Censorship resistance in bitcoin and blockchain is also very beneficial for businesses because they no longer have to depend on a government’s approval of their contract terms.
No transaction fees
Intermediaries charge fees for their services which may be passed on to the customer. When these costs are added to each transaction, they can become quite expensive. Consumers who pay an intermediary as part of a transaction can be forced to pay even higher fees. Blockchain technology eliminates the need for these third-party middlemen and could ultimately eliminate their costs.
Transactions are always on
When blockchain is used as a means of exchanging value between two parties rather than storing transaction data, there is no need for transactions to be held for any period or delayed due to the availability of information upon request by third parties at any time. In addition, it means there are no transaction fees when transactions are completed and known to the “participants” while they happen.
Governance
There is no need for third parties (doctors, accountants, lawyers, etc.) or outside entities to oversee what happens on a blockchain. The issue is not just about censorship resistance but also about privacy and governance capacity, which can be either centralized or decentralized.
The potential scalability of blockchain technology is related to its ability to scale as more users join the network. Blockchain-based applications will be able to utilize services to make it easier for users without having to keep track of all addresses used on the network.
