Blockchain and Public Law: An introduction

Abstract

In the event blockchain technologies will really affect society as profoundly as it would promise, it is worth assessing not only how these technologies challenge traditional categories of public law but also how constitutional democracies can exploit the potentialities of blockchain applications. Nonetheless, blockchain technologies can also marginalise public actors in areas of public interests such as health or financial markets as well as in relation to the enforcement of legal rules against illicit behaviours. These technologies could lead to a shift of power from legal rules adopted by public actors to a mix of private and technological rules established by decentralised and unaccountable entities. This book aims at developing a comprehensive overview of the primary legal challenges brought by the rise of the blockchain in the field of public law, primarily with regard to the role of public actors in addressing the challenges and opportunities of these technologies. Assuming that this technology may be highly beneficial only for economic and financial transactions but also for society, this book aims at coupling the analysis of this relationship with a deeper investigation of the impact of blockchain technologies on public law.