Nasdaq nordic has been experiencing severe problems today with the functioning of their trading services. Apparently an alarm in Sweden's office caused the whole of nasdaq nordic's trading system to crash. Thereby making trading stocks impossible in most of the Nordic countries, apart from Norway, which rely's on another business.
Source: https://secure.flickr.com/photos/bfishadow/3100369536/
How can things like these happen?
This might be the question many ponder upon hearing this. Rightfully so, I might add. Nowadays, we rely so much on technology that we leave even fragile systems in charge of important duties like stock trading. We often forget that most of the systems we currently rely on are easily brought down and that many of them are placed in the hands of one authority. Today showed what centralization and old technologies can amount to.
What could be done?
The answer might be clear to many who are familiar with the blockchain technology. Yes, it would be as simple as introducing a world-wide stock exchange based on the blockchain. It would decentralize the impact that problems such as this might have. Not only that, but it would also make transferring stocks easier and faster. It would also make the whole process cheaper and better in many ways.
Why haven't we seen this happen yet?
Profits. Nasdaq has admittedly been investigating the possibilities involved in the blockchain technology for years now and it doesn't take a genius to realize that using the blockchain would be a no-brainer. However, the problem is that if every stock owned would be put on a decentralized blockchain or even a centralized blockchain that would be in the control of governments or some authority, the odds would be that Nasdaq would not be the one controlling things anymore. They couldn't bill for their services as the blockchain would automatically register changes in ownership and record them on the blockchain. The banks also wouldn't like it if it became simpler for people to move their stocks out of one bank and into another.
Will we see it happen?
Most likely. As I stated, anyone can see it is a no brainer. Therefore, what nasdaq and others are doing, is trying to figure out how to build the system so that it doesn't take them out of the equation or if they can even make themselves more needed. This is very understandable, who would work to destroy their own earnings. Well anyway, I can see that blockchain will eventually be used to save the data of the ownership of shares, which will benefit everyone in someway. It is interesting to see what the companies under pressure will come up with. But any other option is highly unlikely. The time is ticking and the companies also know it.