Blockchain and Its Impact on Business and Society

November 2019
This syllabus is subject to change as the semester/session progresses to
accommodate instructional and/or student needs.
Instructors
Nir Kshetri Email: nir.kshetri@gmail.com
Diana Carolina Rojas Torres Email: diana.rojas7@unisabana.edu.co

Blockchain—a kind of distributed ledger technology-- has been described in the popular press as the
next big thing. Blockchain is considered to have the potential to cause major economic, political and
social transformations. The industries that are likely to be impacted by blockchain--- finance,
healthcare, defense, supply chain management, luxury goods, food and beverage, government, to name
a few- will be worth in the order of tens of trillions of dollars. Unsurprisingly it is the most talked-
about and discussed topic in technology.

In light of the above observations, this course examines key concepts and main features of
blockchain, analyzes the evolution of this technology and reviews present and potential applications.
Economic, organizational, social and political impacts of blockchain are explored. An improved
understanding of the driving forces and motivations behind organizations’ adoption of blockchain-
based applications will be provided. Tailoring the main concepts and theories to the situations in which
nations, industries and organizations function, the course offers in-depth case studies that explore
contexts, mechanisms and processes related to the development and deployment of blockchain.
Examples, special cases, and applications at the national, industry, functional area and organizational
levels are laid out in detail. It offers a fresh and unique perspective on the opportunities and challenges
that lie ahead for the pervasiveness and widespread use of blockchain-based smart contracts.

Student Learning Outcomes:

At the completion of the course, students will be able to:

1) Identify the characteristics of blockchain that are likely to play key roles transforming business
models and impacting the societies.
2) Describe economic, organizational, social, ethical and political impacts of blockchain.
3) Analyze the impact of blockchain in the developing world.
4) Analyze the key challenges, barriers and limitations of blockchain.
5) .Explain the current and planned uses of blockchain in various economies, industries and
organizational functions.
Teaching Methods and Assignments for Achieving Learning Outcomes:

The course will be organized around lectures, discussion, case analysis, research on various
aspects of blockchain and group presentations by students.

Evaluation and Grading Policy

Your course grades will be based on a research paper and presentation. All presentations will
be on November 28, 2019. The final paper is due December 5, 2019. More details will be
announced in the class.
Tentative Course Schedule
Date Topic
25 Part I: Concepts,
Nov. Evolution, and Business
Model Disruption
Introduction to the course
What is blockchain?
Definitions, concepts and
characteristics
Technological infrastructure
for blockchain
Virtual
currencies/cryptocurrencies,
blockchain crypto-property
and other applications
Blockchain-based
organizational forms,
business models and
strategies
History, evolution, and
future prospects
Distributed autonomous
organizations
Trustless systems
Micrometering and
micropayments
Challenges, barriers and
limitations
26 Part II: Economic,
Nov. Organizational, Social,
Ethical and Political
Impacts
Efficiency gains and
economic success
Readings/remarks
1. " Blockchain and The Economics of Customer
Satisfaction” IEEE IT Professional
2. “The Evolution of Formal Institutions Related to Initial
Coin Offerings”
3. “Smart Contracts: Trade Facilitation and Smart
Supervision in South-South Cooperation”
4. " Cryptocurrencies: Transparency vs. Privacy", IEEE
Computer,
5. " How criminals can manipulate cryptocurrency markets”
Conversation, May 31,
https://theconversation.com/how-can-criminals-
manipulate-cryptocurrency-markets-97294
6. "Do Cryptocurrencies Fuel Ransomware” IEEE IT
Professional 19(5), 11-15.
7. " Blockchain and Electronic Healthcare Records ", IEEE
Computer
8. " Blockchain as a Tool to Facilitate Property Rights
Protection in the Global South"
9. "Complementary and Synergistic Properties of
Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence” IEEE IT
Professional, 21(6) 60-65.
10. "Blockchain Could Be the Answer to Cybersecurity. Maybe”.
Wall Street Journal, 29 May
https://www.wsj.com/articles/blockchain-could-be-the-
answer-to-cybersecurity-maybe-1527645960
11. "Using blockchain to secure the 'internet of things'” March 7,
http://www.latimes.com/sns-using-blockchain-to-secure-
the-internet-of-things-90002-20180307-story.html
 Social, political and
environmental impacts
Implications for corporate
governance
Poverty reduction and
financial inclusion in the
developing world
Security and privacy
Ethical considerations
27 Part III: Cases and
Nov. Applications
Bootcamp in Digital
Economy. Living Lab 9-
1pm.
Country cases: China,
Colombia and India
Applications in the finance,
banking and insurance
industries
Applications in international
trade
Applications in supply chains
networks
12. "Blockchain’s roles in strengthening cybersecurity and
protecting privacy " Telecommunications Policy, 41(10), pp. 1027-
1038
13. “Can Blockchain Strengthen the Internet of Things?” IEEE
IT Professional in 2017
14. " Online Advertising Fraud ", IEEE Computer
15. “How cryptocurrency scams work
16. "Are cryptocurrencies a dream come true for cyber-
extortionists?” Conversation, September 11,
https://theconversation.com/are-cryptocurrencies-a-dream-
come-true-for-cyber-extortionists-80115
17. "Can blockchain technology help poor people around the
world?” Conversation, April 30,
https://theconversation.com/can-blockchain-technology-
help-poor-people-around-the-world-76059
18. ."Blockchain in Developing Countries” IEEE IT Professional
20(2), 11-14.
19. “Will blockchain emerge as a tool to break the poverty chain
in the Global South?” Third World Quarterly, 38 (8), 1710-1732
20. " Blockchain-based property registries may help lift poor
people out of poverty” June 28, Conversation,
https://theconversation.com/blockchain-based-property-
registries-may-help-lift-poor-people-out-of-poverty-98796
21. " Blockchain-Enabled E-voting ", IEEE Software 35(4), 95-99
22. “Blockchain voting is vulnerable to hackers, software glitches
and bad ID photos – among other problems”,
23. " Blockchain-based fintechs and cryptocurrencies for low-
income people: Technical potential versus practical reality ",
IEEE Computer
24. " Blockchain systems are tracking food safety and origins”
November 21, Conversation,
https://theconversation.com/blockchain-systems-are-
tracking-food-safety-and-origins-106491
25. “El Blockchain y la industria de transporte marítimo”,
https://www.larepublica.co/analisis/diana-carolina-rojas-
2707009/el-blockchain-y-la-industria-de-transporte-maritimo-
2707007
26. " Blockchain adoption in supply chain networks in Asia”
IEEE IT Professional,
27. “Blockchain case study of China”
28. " Chinese internet users turn to the blockchain to fight
against government censorship”
29. “Blockchain Industries, Regulations and Policy in Colombia”
", Asian Research Policy
30. " The Indian Blockchain Landscape: Regulations and Policy
Measures", Asian Research Policy
31. " Blockchain’s Roles in Meeting Key Supply Chain
Management Objectives,” International Journal of
Information Management 39, 80–89
32. “Blockchain’s Roles in Enforcing Sustainability Standards in
Supply Chains in Developing Countries”
 28 Part III: Cases and
Nov. Applications (Contd.)
What did we learn in this
course?
Working on group projects
Presentations
33. “Potential Roles of Blockchain in Fighting Poverty and
Reducing Financial Exclusion in the Global South,” Journal
of Global Information Technology Management (20), 201-
204.
34. " Blockchains and International Business”
35. "Blockchain and The Economics of Food Safety”
36. “Facebook’s Libra may be quite attractive in developing
countries”
37. “Can Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies Solve Root Causes
of Poverty?”, presentation at TEDxGreensboro 2018,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDo_Jlov9R4&t=220s

5 Final paper due Please submit before 11:59 PM

Dec.

Information about the Instructors

Nir Kshetri is Professor at University of North Carolina-

Greensboro and a research fellow at Kobe University. He has
authored eight books, one of which has been selected as an
Outstanding Academic Title by Choice Magazine. He has
published about 140 articles in various journals. Nir was the
winner of IEEE IT Professional’s Most Popular Paper Award
in 2019 and 2018 and Outstanding Contribution in
Authorships award in 2019. He also won the Blockchain
Connect Conference’s Most Influential Blockchain Research
Paper in 2019. Nir has been quoted/interviewed and/or his
work has been featured by hundreds of media outlets
worldwide such as Wall Street Journal, Foreign Policy,
Scientific American, Bloomberg TV, Channel News Asia, CBS
News, TV Mundo (Peru), ABF TV (Brazil), Fortune, Time,
Fast Company, Forbes, Christian Science Monitor, SF Gate,
U.S. News & World Report, New Boston Post, Observer, Slate
and Salon. In 2018, he gave a TED Talk about the potential
roles of cryptocurrencies in fighting poverty
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDo_Jlov9R4) ..
Diana Rojas-Torres. Diana Carolina Rojas Torres is an Assistant
Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Universidad de La
Sabana, Colombia. Currently, she is the Head of the Academic
Department of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at International
School of Economic and Administrative Sciences. She is working on
the development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem at Sabana Centro
Region In Cundinamarca – Colombia. She holds a Ph.D in
Management, Innovation, Services and Sustainability from
Laboratorio Management e Sanità MeS, Istituto di Management,
Scuola Superiore Sant'Ann, Pisa Italy.
From December 2013 to June 2014, Diana worked as the
coordinator of the Network of Scientific – Technological
Convergence, which was proposed by the Colombian Government
to develop biregional projects involving East Asian and Latin
American countries. The first meeting was held in Bogota, as part of
the Science and Technology Working Group of the Forum for East
Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC). She has published
papers on the topic of non-economic remittances. In this area, she
has published an article titled, “Diaspora networks, noneconomic
remittances and entrepreneurship development: Evidence from
some economies in Latin America” in the Journal of Developmental
Entrepreneurship (2015). Diana recently published the book Big
Data and Cloud Computing for Development: Lessons from Key
Industries and Economies in the Global South with Prof. Nir Kshetri
and Tobjorn Fredriksson (Routledge: New York).