BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Blockchain technology is revolutionary and its applications could turn the entire financial sector upside down, according to Felix Hufeld, chief of German Finance Regulator.
During a speech at a recent Berlin event, the president of the German Financial Supervisory Authority or BaFin said that blockchain's ability to power distributed applications could actually be revolutionary, despite the ongoing hype around bitcoin and initial coin offerings.
Talking about distributed apps, Hufeld continued, 'These apps are not only safe from failures of individual computers or providers, they also promote the development of a 'blockchain economy.'
Hufeld further said that blockchain applications show promise in areas without effective control mechanisms or trustworthy institutions.
'Thanks to the blockchain, many countries in Africa could make a real quantum leap, for example in the documentation of property rights. For development aid professionals a prerequisite to start real and sustainable economic growth,' he said.
In April, Hufeld had said he did not want to kill innovation in blockchain, while BaFin is taking efforts to regulate cryptocurrency trading over money-laundering concerns.
The agency has recently issued new guidelines regarding how and when to consider tokens issued during ICOs to be securities.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX