Blockchain technology: A revolution set to disrupt current business? A structured literature review on blockchain opportunities and challenges

Abstract

Blockchain technology is receiving increasing attention from the academic world. Originally conceived to run bitcoin cryptocurrency, it proved to have a wide range of applications in diverse fields. Anyway, despite the initial enthusiasm, different challenges and obstacles in the path toward its adoption emerged. In this paper, an initial presentation of the main ideas, building blocks, mechanisms, and dynamics underpinning blockchain technologies is conducted. Thus, applications, opportunities as well as benefits, and problems resulting from blockchain implementation are presented and investigated. The paper aims to provide a sort of guide to all interested entities and practitioners in order to understand blockchain technology and its opportunities. To achieve this goal, a structured literature review on blockchain technology with a focus on the business field is performed. In doing so, a consistent corpus of existing academic literature on the theme is reviewed and analysed, to provide a snapshot of the state-of-the-art of blockchain technology. The final discussion presents the main implications for organizations and individuals and outlines important considerations toward its adoption for all interested entities.