There was a discussion about blockchain technology and the usage of this technology in the franchising industry.  This discussion happened at the Franchise Law Committee meeting in Rome, Italy at the International Bar Association.

The report about the summary of the discussion was forwarded by Craig Tractenberg, the partner at Fox Rothchild to Forbes.

Tractenberg report states, “One of the discussions at the roundtable was about the use of blockchain technology in franchising. Those who know the concept of blockchain technology know it can be applied beyond cryptocurrency transactions.  Any kind of record keeping can use blockchain technology. However, the anticipated usage of the digitized public ledger technology is for digital payment, smart contract, and the database record management systems.” 

Tractenberg further reported: “The commercial application of the technology was itemized to the context of the franchise. The citations were the FOODCOIN Ecosystems which is a global marketplace for that food and agricultural products that are designed to eliminate intermediaries by making use of smart contacts.  FANTOM Foundation , with apps on blockchain for food reservations, geo-location and supply chain management was cited. Carry Protocol ), who are providing merchants and customers with a platform to understand and communicate with each other serves as an effective advertising channel.”

Korea was projected as one of the major countries which is making the maximum use of blockchain technology for commercial application.

Chanticleer’s Holdings, with franchise brands, have introduced Bitcoin to the Hooters legacy program, in January 2018. Michael Pruitt, CEO of stated “Customers will be able to use the cryptocurrency loyalty program across all Chanticleer Holding brands and beyond.”  This loyalty program runs on MobivityMind commerce platform, the merits will be paid out in cryptocurrency. The principles are similar to leveraging strategies and principles of Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, and more.”

Cryptocurrency the encrypted and decentralized digital currency is transferred between peers and the transactions are confirmed on a public ledger through the mining process. There are reportedly 2,000 cryptocurrencies in current usage.  This includes the well-known Bitcoin through those cryptocurrencies that are mainly used for dentists.

The Forbes report concluded stating that the blockchain technology can be used for any kind of record keeping.  Though the current usage is related only to cryptocurrency, it has been concluded that the blockchain technology has got major implications in the Franchise Industry.

It is seen that the franchise transactions can be instantaneous and the settlement will happen immediately after the ledger is updated. It has been seen that the blockchain technology will basically change the way in which franchises will transact the business where blockchain technology can be used to preserve the assets and protect valuable information.