By Adam Turteltaub

I admit it.  I have a problem when it comes to understanding blockchain technology.  I think I understand what it is and somewhat how it works, but I’m not sure why anyone needs it, or how it can be used for compliance programs.

Syed Hussain, CEO of the Americas for BANKEX offered to help.  As you’ll hear in this podcast he provides an overview of the technology.  It’s highly secure, distributed and decentralized, he explains, which means it is relatively difficult for someone to hack or to meddle with a record.  Each block of data is immutable.

One key benefit of the technology, Syed argues, is that it can create trust, which can help on compliance issues such as Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML).

He makes some very interesting points about the technology and its potential, and I’m sure one-day compliance teams will embrace it, but I’m still not sure how.  What do you think about blockchain and how we can use it?