Table of Contents
Preface xi
Chapter 1 What is Blockchain? 1
1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 Distributed Computing 5
1.3 Centralization vs. Decentralization 6
1.4 Permissioned vs. Permissionless 12
1.5 Bitcoin 14
1.6 Proliferation of Blockchain Technology 17
1.7 Initial Coin Offering (ICO) 18
1.8 Blockchain Platforms 20
References 21
Chapter 2 Bitcoin 23
2.1 Bitcoin Mining 24
2.2 How Does Bitcoin Work? 26
2.3 Digital Signature 28
2.4 Multisig 30
2.5 Bitcoin Wallets 31
2.6 Two-factor Authentication (2FA) 36
2.7 Hash 38
2.8 Merkle Tree and Block Header 41
2.9 Nonce 43
2.10 Bitcoin Supply 46
2.11 Bitcoin Addresses 47
2.12 Zero Knowledge Proof 49
2.13 Divisible Bitcoin 50
References 52
Chapter 3 Bitcoin Issues 55
3.1 Bitcoin Block Size 55
3.2 SegWit and the Change of Block Size 59
3.3 Bitcoin Split 61
3.4 Keep Your Coins Safe During Forking 63
3.5 Bitcoin and Decentralization 64
3.6 The Mt. Gox Incident 66
3.7 Full Nodes vs. Partial Nodes 67
3.8 Is Bitcoin Truly Anonymous? 69
3.9 Transaction Fees 70
3.10 Transaction Malleability 71
3.11 BIPs, Hard Forks, and Soft Forks 73
3.12 UASF and UAHF 75
3.13 Other Proposed Fixes 77
3.14 Government Attitude 78
3.15 The Future of Bitcoin 80
References 81
Chapter 4 Consensus Mechanisms 85
4.1 Proof of Work vs. Proof of Stake 87
4.2 PoW and PoS Hybrid 89
4.3 dBFT, an Alternative to PoW, and PoS 91
4.4 Paxos and Raft: Consensus Protocols for Distributed Systems 92
4.5 Proof of Concept 95
References 95
Chapter 5 Altcoins 97
5.1 Litecoins - A Lighter Version of Bitcoin 98
5.2 Zcash - A Token with Privacy 99
5.3 Ripple - A Digital Equivalent of SWIFT 100
5.4 Ethereum: The Smart Contract Blockchain 105
5.5 DAO Hacks and Ethereum Forks 110
5.6 Legal Issues 113
5.7 Dapps - Decentralized Apps 114
5.8 Create Your Own Coins Out of Bitcoin 115
5.9 Antshares or NEO - A Multi-Use Token 118
5.10 Bridging Bitcoin & EVM 120
5.11 Asset Digitization 120
5.12 Stablecoins 123
References 124
Chapter 6 Mutual Distributed Ledgers and Digital Currency 127
6.1 Identity, Transaction, and Content MDLs 127
6.2 Identity MDLs 131
6.3 Tokenless MDLs 135
6.4 Building MDLs for Financial Services 135
6.5 Digital Currencies 138
6.6 The Indian Digital Currency Project 139
6.7 Chinese Digital Currency - DCEP 141
6.8 Facebook Libra/Diem 143
6.9 Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) 144
References 146
Chapter 7 Blockchain Beyond Cryptocurrency 149
7.1 BigchainDB 149
7.2 Lightning Network 151
7.3 Corda 154
7.4 HydraChain 156
7.5 MultiChain 156
7.6 Quorum 159
7.7 Hyperledger 160
7.8 Decentralized Internet 162
7.9 Other Blockchain Platforms 163
7.10 Beyond Blockchain 165
References 166
Chapter 8 Industrial Applications for Blockchain 169
8.1 Insurance 169
8.2 Wealth Management 172
8.3 Defense 175
8.4 Healthcare 175
8.5 Food 177
8.6 Credit Rating 178
8.7 Data Management 183
8.8 Internet Security 188
8.9 Logistics 190
8.10 Global Trade, Supply Chains, and Other Areas 193
References 194
Chapter 9 Payment and Lending 197
9.1 Banking and Payment 197
9.2 Third-Party Payment Market 199
9.3 Mobile Wallets and Payment Transfers 206
9.4 Credit Cards and Loan Applications 207
9.5 Peer-to-Peer Lending 209
9.6 Online Lending 212
9.7 Microlending and SME Lending 213
References 215
Chapter 10 Governance and Regulation 217
10.1 Governance and Voting 217
10.2 Regulatory and Compliance Applications 220
10.3 Land Title Registration and Real Estate 222
10.4 Law and Blockchain 223
10.5 Protection of Intellectual Property 224
10.6 Conclusion 226
References 227
Chapter 11 A Glimpse of the Future 229
11.1 The Foundation of Future Technology 231
11.2 The Sharing Economy 232
11.3 Fintech and AI 233
11.4 Fintech Regulation 237
11.5 Data-Driven Fintech 239
11.6 Communication-Driven Fintech 241
11.7 Conclusion 243
References 244
Index 247
