Internet of Things (IoT) is reshaping the incumbent industry to smart industry featured with data-driven decision-making. However, intrinsic features of IoT result in a number of challenges, such as decentralization, poor interoperability, privacy, and security vulnerabilities. Blockchain technology brings the opportunities in addressing the challenges of IoT. In this paper, we investigate the integration of blockchain technology with IoT. We name such synthesis of blockchain and IoT as blockchain of things (BCoT). This paper presents an in-depth survey of BCoT and discusses the insights of this new paradigm. In particular, we first briefly introduce IoT and discuss the challenges of IoT. Then, we give an overview of blockchain technology. We next concentrate on introducing the convergence of blockchain and IoT and presenting the proposal of BCoT architecture. We further discuss the issues about using blockchain for fifth generation beyond in IoT as well as industrial applications of BCoT. Finally, we outline the open research directions in this promising area.

Blockchain for Internet of Things: A Survey

Blockchain is considered by many to be a disruptive core technology. Although many researchers have realized the importance of blockchain, the research of blockchain is still in its infancy. Consequently, this study reviews the current academic research on blockchain, especially in the subject area of business and economics. Based on a systematic review of the literature retrieved from the Web of Science service, we explore the top-cited articles, most productive countries, and most common keywords. Additionally, we conduct a clustering analysis and identify the following five research themes: “economic benefit,” “blockchain technology,” “initial coin offerings,” “fintech revolution,” and “sharing economy.” Recommendations on future research directions and practical applications are also provided in this paper.

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A systematic review of blockchain

Internet of Things (IoT) is reshaping the incumbent industry to smart industry featured with data-driven decision-making. However, intrinsic features of IoT result in a number of challenges such as decentralization, poor interoperability, privacy and security vulnerabilities. Blockchain technology brings the opportunities in addressing the challenges of IoT. In this paper, we investigate the integration of blockchain technology with IoT. We name such synthesis of blockchain and IoT as Blockchain of Things (BCoT). This paper presents an in-depth survey of BCoT and discusses the insights of this new paradigm. In particular, we first briefly introduce IoT and discuss the challenges of IoT. Then we give an overview of blockchain technology. We next concentrate on introducing the convergence of blockchain and IoT and presenting the proposal of BCoT architecture. We further discuss the issues about using blockchain for 5G beyond in IoT as well as industrial applications of BCoT. Finally, we outline the open research directions in this promising area.

Initial coin offerings (ICOs) have emerged as a new mechanism for entrepreneurial finance, with parallels to initial public offerings, venture capital, and pre-sale crowdfunding. In a sample of more than 1,500 ICOs that collectively raise $12.9 billion, we examine which issuer and ICO characteristics predict successful real outcomes (increasing issuer employment and avoiding enterprise failure). Success is associated with disclosure, credible commitment to the project, and quality signals. An instrumental variables analysis finds that ICO token exchange listing causes higher future employment, indicating that access to token liquidity has important real consequences for the enterprise.

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Initial Coin Offerings: Financing Growth with Cryptocurrency Token Sales

A comparative study across the most widely known blockchain technologies is conducted with a bottom-up approach. Blockchains are deconstructed into their building blocks. Each building block is then hierarchically classified into main and subcomponents. Then, varieties of the subcomponents are identified and compared. A taxonomy tree is used to summarise the study and provide a navigation tool across different blockchain architectural configurations.

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A Taxonomy of Blockchain Technologies: Principles of Identification and Classification

Why do businesses go crypto? An empirical analysis of initial coin offerings

In this work, we provide the first comprehensive description of the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) phenomenon, which by the end of 2017 allowed startups around the world to raise more than $5.3 billion, according to market observers. We analyze the determinants of the success of these token offerings by considering a sample of 253 campaigns. We find that the probability of an ICO’s success is higher if the code source is available when a token presale is organized, and when tokens allow contributors to access a specific service (or to share profits). Our results provide valuable insights into this new source of capital for businesses and the key determinants of fundraising success.

Why Do Businesses Go Crypto? An Empirical Analysis of Initial Coin Offerings

The blockchain technology is one of the grand challenges for the governance of new entrepreneurial projects. Thanks to this decentralized mechanism of certification, teams are now able to organize Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and raise money on the Internet offering digital tokens, bypassing any screening or control from central entities and independent auditors. While many of the governance mechanisms applied in traditional venture financing do not apply to ICOs, contributors may rely ex ante on the quality of the team and on unaudited information disclosed in a ‘white paper’, ex post on the development on enforcing digital ‘smart contracts’. In this work we study the governance signals of ICO-backed projects (token rights, institutional setting, team quality), analyzing a sample of 935 offerings. We examine the relationship between governance issues and the fundraising success and we find that both the project team and advisory committee size is positively and significantly correlated with the success. When the fraction of tokens retained by insiders and managers is larger, the probability of fundraising success is also larger, but to a lower extent if the token gives access to a service (‘utility token’). Specific provisions about the future jurisdiction and incorporation of the project are not considered as a credible governance signal. On the contrary, past managerial experience of the proponents is a valuable asset for contributors.

The impact of governance signals on ICO fundraising success

In this chapter we describe the phenomenon of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), i.e. unregulated offerings of digital tokens, built on the innovative blockchain technology, as to provide a means to collect finance for a project on the Internet, disintermediating any external platform, payment agent or professional investor. ICO tokens allow the access to platform services, may serve as cryptocurrencies, or grant profit rights; they are traded on electronic exchanges and represent a new financial asset. We highlight the issues emerged with respect to information asymmetries and moral hazard and we review the nascent empirical literature exploring the ICO token market.

Initial Coin Offerings: Tokens as Innovative Financial Assets

Crowdlending has emerged in recent years as an innovative way to finance new ventures and small companies. However, digitalized funding is a new technology itself; therefore, it is prone to mispricing and inefficiencies. We investigate whether peer-to-peer crowdlending to businesses provides investors with returns consistent with the level of risk borne. By studying over 3000 loans mediated on 68 European platforms we show that the returns are inversely related to loans’ riskiness, suggesting that, on average, crowdfunded loans are mispriced. Our results have important implications for the debate about the role of regulation in FinTech.

Saman Adhami

Papers

Why do businesses go crypto? An empirical analysis of initial coin offerings

Why Do Businesses Go Crypto? An Empirical Analysis of Initial Coin Offerings

The impact of governance signals on ICO fundraising success

Initial Coin Offerings: Tokens as Innovative Financial Assets

Risks and Returns in Crowdlending