Blockchain technology has advanced and invaded the field of technology, emerging at a pace quicker than most other parallel domains over the last few years. While the world is occupied with more prominent players like Facebook, companies are making some radical advancements for able-use cases of the blockchain phenomenon. 

A lot of improvements are happening under the radar at a rapid pace. The pace of progress is so quick that within a decade of the ‘Satoshi white paper‘ coming into the picture, the world is witnessing the evolution of blockchain 5.0.

So what does blockchain 5.0 mean? We must understand the effect of the progress because there is a strong probability that blockchain will become the platform for a significant industrial upheaval in the coming years. 

The application of blockchain is far above currency and finance. We have noticed five generations of blockchain that have been marked by severe upgrades in transaction speeds and throughput rates.

The Blockchain Generation Journey to date

Blockchain generations have prospered with development in levels of security and transaction speed. The applications have developed beyond cryptocurrencies to industries, including the diamond trade, healthcare, etc. However, more prominently, mainstream acceptance seems to be increasing due to the progression of evolving next generations of blockchain technology.

Generation One

The journey commenced with bitcoin when blockchain technology established the foundation of decentralized ledgers and a cryptocurrency that provided a peer-to-peer network for circulating and receiving money. Bitcoin employed the proof of work algorithm, but some scalability issues were addressed.

Generation Two

After Bitcoin came to Ethereum, which granted the formation of secure smart contracts and helped open up the field for decentralized applications, Ethereum deciphered the true capability of blockchain as use cases above cryptocurrencies became visible. The transaction speed recently went up to 15 transactions per second.

Generation Three

The advent of Cardano and EOS as blockchain platforms marked the third generation of blockchain where the transaction speed asserts go over 3,000 transactions per second. The consensus mechanism used for both EOS and Cardano is delegated proof of stake, which reportedly lowers energy costs.

Also, read – Is blockchain as secure as we think it is?

Generation Four 

Projects such as Metahash assert to be running on the fourth generation of blockchain technology. By using the multiple proofs of stake (M-POS) algorithm, Metahash promises over 50,000 transactions per section.

Generation Five 

The latest version of the blockchain technology is blockchain 5.0, and Relictum Pro is the pioneer taking the technology ahead. According to its white paper, it features a smaller block size and allows for a throughput rate of 1 million transactions per second. 

🔥Over 1,000 NFTs have been created at the Relictum NFT marketplace https://t.co/aDgJe1wFCv#Relictum_NFT #NFT #Relictum_Pro #Relictum

— Relictum Pro (@relictumpro) June 14, 2022

A smart contract on Relictum Pro can be signed with ten counterparties, which is a unique property not yet available on any other blockchain network.

It’s important to understand blockchain technology’s progression and generations because of how quickly blockchain is presenting itself as an essential option to solve real-world problems. Needless to say, whichever technique governs finance is likely to regulate other industries later as well. 

As the cost for operating transactions goes down on the blockchain. Managers, entrepreneurs, and institutions of the world should take serious notice and equip themselves to test, implement, and take advantage of blockchain technology. It is specifically true if your business deals with any of these services:

• Payments and money transfers.

• Online contracts

• Proof of provenance (property, antiques, and mortgages).

• Distributed cloud storage

• Digital identity

• Supply chain communications

• Gift cards and loyalty programs

• Networking and IoT

There are already some noteworthy examples of blockchain adoption in various industries. For example, IBM is using blockchain for supply chain verification. According to its website, Accenture offers blockchain consulting and solutions for the insurance industry.  De Beers is using a blockchain platform to trace diamonds from mine to customer. And Medicalchain uses blockchain technology to store health records.

To make the right decision about implementing blockchain, there are several questions you should ask. What is the current cost of collecting and processing generated business data? How accurate are the current data capture and filing mechanism? Will improving speed and security provide a distinct advantage over your competitors?

Businesses can set up their blockchain R&D team or get professional blockchain consulting services. These can be smart investments that allow you to take benefit of the potential return on blockchain implementation. Since the technology is newer and the blockchain environment is everchanging, one should make a genuine effort to understand the relevant legal and regulatory frameworks before implementing blockchain in business processes. 

Also, carefully select partners or workforce members to integrate blockchain solutions for improving business processes, as there is a limited supply of experienced professionals in the domain. There is a long way to go, and blockchain will keep astonishing us with not just price fluctuations, but also some unique features that put power in the hands of the people.