NetworkNewsWire
Editorial Coverage: Investment in blockchain technology is
growing rapidly. As innovators develop new ways to apply the
technology to a range of industries, more companies are finding new
applications for the technology and attracting increased funding
from investors at the same time. SinglePoint, Inc.
(SING) (SING
Profile) has attracted investment for a broad range of
blockchain services, including applications in payment processing,
logistics and health care. Visa, Inc. (V) is
testing a new business-to-business blockchain payment service aimed
at making international financial transactions easier.
Mastercard, Inc. (MA) has
registered a patent for a blockchain database to reduce the need
for intermediaries and resultant delays in payment processing.
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) is
collaborating with a shipping firm to develop blockchain-based
international logistics designed to smooth out global supply chains
while HIVE Blockchain Technologies Ltd. (TSX-V: HIVE)
(HVBTF) operates its own cryptocurrency facilities that
seek to bridge the gap between new and traditional finance.
Blockchain’s Potential Unleashed
Investing in blockchain has never been easier. The distributed
ledger technology that drives cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, is
now being applied to a wide range of services and sectors. A
recent CB Insights report has highlighted over
30 industries that blockchain could transform or is already
transforming. The technology is offering businesses faster
financial transactions and smoother supply chain management, with
spin-off benefits for better health-care provision and government
oversight of elections.
As blockchain spreads to other sectors, it continues to have the
greatest impact in finance. Financial service firms are looking for
ways to improve banking and payment processing through blockchain,
with redesigns of traditional processes that could revolutionize
the sector. Startups that apply blockchain in all areas of finance
are springing up and attracting plenty of investment interest in
their offerings. Meanwhile, bigger players that initially rejected
all things cryptocurrency-related are now seeking patents to make
blockchain part of their businesses.
Diversifying in Blockchain
One company that is making the most of this potential is
SinglePoint, Inc. (SING). From its
starting place as a mobile technology provider, the company has
turned itself into a diverse holding company with a range of
innovative blockchain-based products.
SinglePoint is involved in some of the best-known areas of
blockchain businesses: digital currency and cannabis. The company
recently welcomed to its board of directors former Amazon general
manager and current F5 Networks Senior Vice President Venugopal
Aravamudan. With more than 25 years of experience in the technology
sector, Aravamudan has committed to making accretive introductions
to the company leveraging cloud computing capabilities that will
accelerate the capability for SinglePoint to deliver
blockchain-enabled solutions.
SinglePoint is working on financial technology solutions through
collaborations with other companies. SinglePoint is also working to
raise the profile of blockchain technology through a collaboration
with entrepreneur and SharkTank veteran Kevin Harrington, the brain
behind 20 companies with combined revenues over the $100 million
mark and whose public profile will help bring SinglePoint’s
services to a wider market.
Many of SinglePoint’s financial solutions are geared toward the
cannabis market, a growing sector that has been under-supported by
the traditional finance industry. Cannabis sales are now legal in
29 U.S. states, but vendors struggle to access traditional banking
systems. SinglePoint’s SingleSeed Payments service provides
cannabis suppliers with fast, secure payment systems, allowing
these suppliers to accept payment methods other than cash. The
company is also using blockchain to support additional parts of the
supply chain, including inventory tracking and deliveries, as well
as informing customers about products and ensuring that businesses
meet tight regulatory requirements.
SinglePoint also has a joint-venture agreement with Smart
Cannabis Corp. to license and market the SMART APP, an industry
specific application that enables cultivators to control entire
operations from a mobile device. Among other initiatives, the
companies are collaborating to integrate SinglePoint’s bitcoin
payment solution into the app and finalize a “track and trace”
solution utilizing blockchain.
“Consumers who walk into a dispensary, where a cultivator is
using our system, will be able to see how, when, and where the
product was grown. There is no other system on the market like it
and we plan to be the first company to use transparent and
traceable blockchain technology to bring this “track and trace”
product knowledge to consumers,” SinglePoint President Wil Ralston
stated (http://nnw.fm/d7zWA).
Blockchain in Medicine
SinglePoint’s involvement in the healthcare sector extends
beyond medical marijuana. The company is bringing blockchain into
hospitals for a very different purpose.
This move comes through a recently announced collaboration with
ORHub (http://nnw.fm/k0Yib). ORHub, a provider of real-time
surgical analytics, already offers a range of products that benefit
hospitals, patients and the health-care industry by improving data
capture and the understanding of what is happening in and around
the operating room. SinglePoint is bringing its blockchain
expertise to this work.
Gathering and analyzing data can be a huge challenge in the
medical sector. With records being kept for numerous patients,
departments and systems, forming a complete data profile can be a
daunting task. Yet the failure to do so leads to inefficiencies,
lost opportunities for learning and even inadequate patient care.
The partnership between SinglePoint and ORHub seeks to improve this
situation. Starting with an initial $750,000 development project,
SinglePoint will be finding ways to integrate blockchain with
ORHub’s data systems so that records can be made and maintained
more accurately and efficiently.
“Having ORHub select SinglePoint as their solutions architect is
fantastic,” SinglePoint President Wil Ralston stated. “We are
beyond excited to dig into this project and develop a truly
industry-changing solution. With the commitment from ORHub to fund
the project, we are in a strong position to design, develop and
execute on the solution. As part of this collaboration and broader
corporate initiatives in the blockchain market, we are aggressively
establishing working relationships with key blockchain
engineers.”
Working with ORHub is likely to be only the first in a series of
medical endeavors from SinglePoint. With an entry into the sector
via ORHub and so much work to be done, SinglePoint has the
opportunity to utilize and expand on blockchain’s place in
improving patient care.
A Forward-Looking Strategy for Success
The ORHub venture ties in neatly with SinglePoint’s broader
strategy of growth through collaborations and acquisitions.
Another example of this strategy is the company’s recent
decision to acquire Bitcoin Beyond (http://nnw.fm/rP4s6), a payment platform for using
cryptocurrencies. This user-friendly, web-based platform allows
merchants to integrate cryptocurrency payments into their systems
through existing web-enabled, point-of-sale devices. It also allows
dollar payments to be carried out using a range of different
currencies. By acquiring Bitcoin Beyond — a purchase valued at $1
million — SinglePoint has positioned itself to take a lead in
putting blockchain-based payments into high street stores and
everyday financial transactions.
This is part of a broader acquisitions strategy that powers
SinglePoint’s business. The company has raised over a million
dollars in funding (http://nnw.fm/5OHfF) to drive an aggressive strategy
of acquisitions across the blockchain and cannabis cultivation
sectors.
The result has been a dramatic rise in the company’s value.
SinglePoint share price rose from $0.01 to nearly $0.08 in a year’s
time and remains well above its initial value. With an expansion
strategy targeting a broad range of assets across cutting-edge,
high-value sectors of the economy, SinglePoint is emerging as a
diversified holding company within the blockchain field.
Big Players in Blockchain
Other major players in the financial sector have also taken an
interest in blockchain.
The biggest financial companies were initially wary of this new
technology, but they are starting to come around. Visa
(V) is making its first steps into blockchain with its B2B
Connect service, trials of which were announced in November. This
business-to-business financial platform is intended to smooth out
cross-border payments by supporting direct payments between
institutions. Like much of blockchain finance, the objective is to
make payments more direct, cut out the middleman, eliminate delays
and decrease expenses. Developed in collaboration with blockchain
startup Chain, this platform will help provide security and
transparency for international payments. Banks in the United
States, South Korea, the Philippines and Singapore are taking part
in the trial.
Mastercard (MA) places
“putting technology first” among its interests
as a business and is looking to blockchain to make that a reality.
While avoiding bitcoin, the company has taken an interest in other
uses for blockchain. It filed a patent on
Nov. 9 on a blockchain database to be used in payment
transfers. Like Visa, Mastercard is using its blockchain systems to
eliminate delays in payment processing. The involvement of such
significant companies bodes well for blockchain financial
technology.
While finance companies are taking an interest in blockchain as
a way to speed up their services, technology companies are looking
to finance as a sector in which to apply their knowhow. Computing
giant IBM (IBM) has taken an interest in
blockchain for supply chains and payment systems. Its boldest
venture in this area is a new company set up in collaboration with
Danish shipping provider Maersk. Following a successful 2016 trial,
this new venture will look to apply blockchain to its global supply
network. Working with ports, customs officers, banks and shippers,
it will use blockchain’s impressive record-sharing potential to
smooth out the global flow of goods.
Companies specializing in blockchain are profiting from the
growth of this sector. HIVE Blockchain (TSX-V: HIVE)
(HVBTF) is working to connect traditional businesses with
blockchain-driven financial sectors. The company has attracted over
$100 million of investment and is further financed by its own
cryptocurrency mining operations.
With so many initiatives by a growing number of companies such
as SinglePoint, blockchain technology looks like a solid piece of
the financial future.
For more information on SinglePoint, visit
SinglePoint,
Inc. (SING)
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