Permissionless Blockchain in Financial Services

Explore how blockchain is reshaping the financial services landscape with insights from our roundtable discussion at the Point Zero Forum.

Web3 and blockchain technology are transforming the financial services landscape. Although many institutions have prioritised private ledgers, interest in decentralised models like permissionless blockchain is growing due to their potential for enhanced transparency, liquidity, and security.

Following a roundtable discussion at the Point Zero Forum, we published a whitepaper titled Permissionless Blockchain in Financial Services, exploring how decentralised blockchain can drive transparency, liquidity, and security in finance, along with the steps needed for wider adoption.

Key topics from the paper

  • The state of blockchain in finance: An overview of how Web3 and blockchain technology are reshaping the financial services landscape, from private ledgers to emerging decentralised models. 
  • Key benefits of permissionless blockchains: Insights into the advantages of permissionless blockchains, such as enhanced transparency, liquidity, security, and the potential to democratise finance. 
  • Challenges to adoption: An exploration of key hurdles for broader industry adoption, including settlement finality, compliance, cost and interoperability. 
  • Recommendations for broader adoption: Strategic action points to overcome existing challenges, from enhancing international collaboration and setting clear regulatory requirements to embracing innovation and seizing the current momentum.  
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Download the whitepaper

The authors

  • Stefan Grasmann

    Stefan Grasmann

    Group Head of Thought Leadership & Chief of Blockchain

    CV

    Stefan Grasmann is partner and Group Head of Thought Leadership & Chief of Blockchain at Zühlke. He is responsible for the thought leadership program of Zühlke and is passionate about Blockchain technology and Decentralized Finance (DeFi).

  • Ammar Ahmad, Expert Business Consultant, Zühlke

    Ammar Ahmad

    Senior Consulting Manager

    CV

    Ammar joined Zühlke in April 2022. Before joining Zühlke he worked in consulting for almost four years, mainly in the financial services and automotive industry. His focus the design and implementation of operating models and system architectures as well as process optimization. Among other things, he was involved in the implementation of a new Finance architecture as part of an IT transformation at a German private bank and supported the agile deployment of a group-wide CRM system at a German automotive manufacturer. Ammar earned his B.Sc. in Business Administration from Frankfurt School of Finance & Management and holds an M.Sc. degree in Innovation Management from Rotterdam School of Management. He is a certified Scrum Master, Product Owner, and SAFe Agilist.