In 1439, a European goldsmith created an invention that would change the course of history. The machine was hand powered and extremely primitive by industrial standards, and yet it has been credited for the industrial revolution itself and continues to this day to have a very profound impact on virtually everyone's life.

Blockchain technology should have no less of a disruptive impact. The first time I worked with blockchain technology, I understood immediately that this thing was real and was going to be a game changer. The clearance and settlement of a typical securities transaction still takes days. I worked for several years at the largest securities clearing firm in the world out of law school and had firsthand experience with the ancient technology and inefficiencies of the current back office and operational infrastructure in the securities industry.

We know that all centrally planned and controlled systems eventually fail, and the more complex they are the more catastrophic the failure. The decentralized nature of the blockchain makes it more effective, efficient, and fault tolerant. As a finance person who also happens to be a lawyer, and aside from the legal aspects, I view the blockchain and Initial Coin Offerings (“ICOs”) as a great evolution in the financial services industry and one that could potentially unleash free market capitalism as never before and create global financial inclusion.

The impact of global financial inclusion should not be underestimated; this may have more of an impact than anything else that ever occurred throughout human history except for the expansion of literacy. In the same way that cell phones and solar panels have allowed people in underdeveloped economies to skip steps to modern globalism, blockchain has used cases such as voting, legal records, and land title recording that will have the ability to empower individuals at the expense of controlling and oppressive governments.