Is blockchain overhyped? Analysts at investment bank Berenberg thinks so

Blockchain technology, heralded as may as the future of finance, has been branded “overhyped” by analysts at investment bank Berenberg.

Despite the “genuine excitement” over the technology’s potential, analysts believe the technical difficulty of implementing it will delay its progress.

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Banking is one of the areas with the biggest potential application, in particular in settlements and clearing, trade finance, securities and interbank payments, however, work on such tech is only at the pilot stage.

“There are currently only two large disruptive blockchain successes: cryptocurrencies, and initial coin offerings (ICOs),” said an analyst note from the bank.

Insurance, supply chain, and logistics and energy markets were also identified as promising areas of use by experts at the more than 400-year-old bank.

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Bitcoins and ICOs have both drawn divided opinions, with blockchain, the distributed ledger technology (DLT) behind bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies seen as having more concrete applications.

Bitcoin has rocketed to all-time highs above $6,000 in recent days, but is volatile. And ICOs have received a string of warnings from regulators in recent months when it comes to risk.