Forbes recently released a new list that features 50 companies — with minimum revenues or valuations of $1 billion and U.S. operations — that are exploring or integrating blockchain technology into their operations. The new Forbes list will ultimately be comprised of 100 companies, but only the initial 50 have been released so far.
A report from International Data Corp stated that corporate and government spending on blockchain technology has increased by 89% compared to last year, and is set to hit $2.9 billion in 2019. By 2022, the firm reports that total blockchain spending will reach $12.4 billion. In a survey from Deloitte, 95% of respondents stated that their companies plan to invest in blockchain tech this year.
Many of the companies are stated as exploring or using multiple blockchains. Some firms, such as JP Morgan, are likely further in the development process, having already publicly declared that they are using Ethereum for their U.S digital token.
Of the fifty companies, thirty-two are building on Ethereum or Enterprise Ethereum derived blockchains platforms.
While the Forbes article doesn’t list commentary, it’s likely that the large developer community, existing standards developed by the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance, and public compatibility are driving some of Enterprise Ethereum’s reported dominance.
Ten companies are developing or exploring Quorum, an Ethereum derived blockchain, and three are exploring Hyperledger’s Sawtooth Ethereum blockchain. Sawtooth-Ethereum — or Seth — is also compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine.
In comparison, Hyperledger Fabric has eighteen companies exploring its permissioned blockchain, with twenty-eight using IBM’s blockchain versions such as Fabric, Burrow, Sawtooth, and Indy.
Other notable aspects about the list include Facebook as the only company which blockchain platform is listed as unknown. Additionally, Google is reportedly experimenting with various cryptocurrencies although the only smart contract platform it’s exploring is Ethereum.
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