carl - ludwig thiele : blockchain technology - opportunities and challenges keynote speech by mr carl - ludwig thiele, member of the executive board of the deutsche bundesbank, at the 6th central banking workshop 2016, eltville, 21 november 2016. * * * 1. introduction ladies and gentlemen i would like to warmly welcome you to the 6th central banking workshop. i am delighted that we have been able to attract such top - class speakers and participants to this event, who, given their experience and knowledge, are able to provide valuable contributions on what is a highly topical subject. this year, the workshop is about blockchain technology, which has generated a large swell of public interest, or even hype, one could say. with our workshop, entitled “ blockchain technology – opportunities and challenges ", we want to enable a lively exchange between researchers, practitioners and regulators. each of these groups, in its own right, has a keen interest in this topic. but, as ernst ulrich von weizsacker once said : " an exchange of views requires people to talk to each other, not about each other ". in this spirit, i hope that we will have a stimulating exchange of views over the coming days. blockchain technology is currently generating almost exuberant enthusiasm among banks, enterprises and public bodies. new initiatives and cooperation agreements on blockchain applications are being announced in the financial press on a near daily basis. this is not limited solely to banks and private enterprises, but also encompasses projects by governments and central banks. examples of such cooperation agreements can be found on all of the world ’ s continents. beside fintechs and other startups, participants include the bank of england, stock exchanges in the united states, australia and japan, as well as numerous commercial banks, to name only a few. even an aircraft manufacturer, airbus, is exploring blockchain for the purpose of process optimisation. 2. structure and objectives of the workshop how is it that a relatively complicated form of technical processing is generating such enthusiasm? in this workshop we want to address this question by talking about the possibilities that blockchain technology opens up and the challenges this presents. this is anything but a trivial undertaking. indeed, views on these possibilities and challenges vary greatly from person to person, but also among institutions. at present, there is no telling whether blockchain will supersede existing technology in a few years ’ time. all the more reason

of its decentralised structure, blockchain still has high obstacles to surmount before it can be applied across the board, owing to its susceptibility to manipulation. recent hacker attacks are a case in point. this is another reason why the debate has largely shifted from open blockchain applications, such as bitcoin, to closed networks with a limited circle of participants. 4. conclusion inefficiencies are often perpetuated not by a lack of technology, but by ( historical ) structures. blockchain technology is therefore not a patent solution for change, but it does provide an opportunity to make change. disruptive technologies require time to develop, mature and unfurl their full potential. not every innovation succeeds, though, and it remains to be seen how the application of blockchain technology will develop. following the revolutionary beginnings with bitcoin, the prevailing view now seems to be that blockchain applications will spread rather more gradually. one might therefore speak of evolution rather than revolution. before we can even ask questions about the broader use of this technology, we must first be sure that using this new technology is at least as secure, efficient and cost - effective in financial transactions as conventional technology. blockchain technology could become a game changer, in the financial industry and, perhaps in particular, beyond. the potential of blockchain technology is often compared to that of the internet. it should be remembered that it took some time before the truly beneficial applications of the internet emerged. with blockchain, we are only at the very beginning of a potential development of this kind. innovations are the lifeblood of a continually developing economy. moreover, evolution processes are never linear. the first great wave of euphoria, which was also seen in the media, is being followed by a phase of checking, weighing - up and consolidation, before new offers and technologies are rolled out on a broad scale. ladies and gentlemen, goethe once said : " we know accurately only when we know little ; with knowledge doubt increases. " my impression is that with the increasing efforts being devoted to blockchain technology, doubts will also increase as to whether this technology can meet the expectations being placed on it, which in some cases are extremely high. the question that we want to examine in more detail in this workshop is what specific doubts we have and whether the technology can overcome them. i would like to conclude by wishing you all an interesting and, above all, inform