Blockchain and the General Data Protection Regulation: Reconciling protection and innovation
Lucie Munier, Ashley Kemball-Cook · Journal of securities operations & custody · 2019
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force in May 2018 and has stimulated many conversations but importantly has strengthened individuals’ data protection rights. Blockchain as a technology is steadily advancing with great potential for delivering efficiencies to many processes due to its novel methods for storing and transfer of data. The GDPR and Blockchain have been seen to be clashing by many, and there are fears that the regulation will stifle the innovation of this emerging technology. This paper describes the relationship and concludes that the issues arising in this context do not indicate the termination of innovation but rather that with sustained communication between regulators and technologists, and with continued responsible innovation, the GDPR and Blockchain will prosper.