Hanoi (VNS/VNA) – As blockchain disrupts the banking and financeindustry, experts urged caution was needed in its application together with a properlegal framework to limit risks and ensure development is on the right track.

According to Sanjay Chakrabarty, deputy general manager of OrientCommercial Bank (OCB), with blockchain, financial transactions and investmentdecisions were becoming easier, faster and more convenient.

The banking and finance industry’s readiness in approaching newtechnologies was very high, he said, adding that the potential of blockchain tothe economy was enormous. However, it was not easy to create a business ecosystemon a nationwide scale based on this platform, he warned.

The banking and finance industry itself was pioneering the application ofinformation technology, said Ngo Tan Vu Khanh, director of Kaspersky Vietnam.However, the wide application of blockchain technologies, such as insurtech ininsurance and fintech in finance, tended to go beyond the control of managementagencies and the current legal framework.

Robert Trong Tran, PwC Vietnam’s director of Cybersecurity and PrivacyServices, said that technologies based on blockchain, such as virtualcurrencies, contained risks, pointing out that a significant percentage ofcyptocurrency transactions were linked to crime.

Duong Nhu Hung from the HCM City University of Technology, said that nocountries would want to give up control of their domestic currency as well ascash circulation in the economy. “Imagine what will happen if bitcoin isallowed to be used widely. It will be very difficult to implement monetarypolicies effectively, resulting in a loss of control over macro-economicbalance,” he said.

Experts said caution was needed in the application of technologies basedon blockchain. In addition, it was necessary to develop a proper legalframework to manage development.

According to PwC, the banks that will succeed in the future are those thatcan best employ digital and data technologies to elevate customer experience,automate business processes and improve regulatory compliance.

Technologies are disrupting the banking industry more than ever, however,not all technologies are allowed by management agencies.

Thus, PwC urged banks to actively cooperate with management agencies todevelop a legal framework which could stimulate innovation and ensure consumertrust.

Starting from the banking and finance industry with controversial bitcoin,technology based on blockchain is spreading to other sectors such as logisticsand origin tracing.

Ha Anh Tuan from IBM Vietnam, said blockchain-based shipping platformTradelens developed by IBM and global logistics company Mearsk, for example,could help save 27 billion USD from cutting paper, procedures and overlaps.

In addition, the platform would help improve customs clearance and preventtrade fraud.

Tuan still said that 27 billion USD in the total trade circulation valueof $14 trillion was modest, but when blockchain-based technologies werecombined with AI, IoT, Big Data and Cloud Computing, the benefits wouldincrease.

Dao Ha Trung, who created food origin tracing app TE-Food, said thatblockchain was shortening the supply chain but was still able to provideaccurate and updated information to relevant parties involved in the chain,especially management agencies.

According to Hung, the application of blockchain technology in origintracing would only be a matter of time.-VNS/VNA