Blockchain technology is all set to revolutionise the financial sector - banking, insurance and the capital markets - and cause major disruption but it will prove to be beneficial in the long run, according to experts.
They were speaking at a session on the technology on Friday, the concluding day of the two-day Fintech Startup Challenge 2017 held here. They said the decision of the Andhra Pradesh Government to promote the technology in the State was the right one.
J. Satyanarayana, the secretary in the Dept of Electronics and IT, said the Andhra Pradesh Government would gradually introduce the technology in the State and "it is high on our list of priorities." He said Visakhapatnam was reverberating with the fintech mantra and the city would emerge as a major fintech hub in the future.
Sudin Baraokar, the head of innovation, SBI, said his bank was investing on the technology and "we want to be one of the largest blockchain platforms." He said it is the right time for startups for developing the technology. "We will support and invest in startups in the sector," he said.
Paul Kitti, the co-founder of TenX, said reduction of the transaction cost was the critical factor and the technology would certainly help in the matter.
Akshay Dhanak, the vice-president of HDFC Life, spoke about the relevance of the tech for the insurance sector and Vinay Agarwal, the CEO of Angel Broking, also spoke.
Rachna Nath, the head of digital consulting services, KPMG, said the technology would remove intermediaries but there were two critical issues - scale and infrastructure - to be addressed before introducing the technology.
J.A Chowdary, the IT adviser to the Chief Minister, said blockchain technology would certainly usher in certain fundamental changes not only in the financial sector, but in other fields as well. He said the AP Government had identified it as one of the most potential areas. Startups would b encouraged by the AP Technology Services.