The Power of Blockchain: Decentralization

Mgr. Maria Florencia Barreiro

Master's thesis

Abstract:

The emergence of Bitcoin has unleashed an incredible amount of thinking in moral and economic aspects. This thesis takes you back in history to today's relationship between the State, money, and society. The research question is whether blockchain technology, which powers Bitcoin, will change this relationship as we know it. This thesis finds that the internet adoption in the last century has already led to a shift in the traditional structure of government, market, and civil society and the emergence of new government models that focus on citizens' needs. However, the digital relationship between government and citizens has also increased the government's power over the citizen through the collection of data hosted on state servers, threatening privacy.

Abstract:

The emergence of Bitcoin has unleashed an incredible amount of thinking in moral and economic aspects. This thesis takes you back in history to today's relationship between the State, money, and society. The research question is whether blockchain technology, which powers Bitcoin, will change this relationship as we know it. This thesis finds that the internet adoption in the last century has already led to a shift in the traditional structure of government, market, and civil society and the emergence of new government models that focus on citizens' needs. However, the digital relationship between government and citizens has also increased the government's power over the citizen through the collection of data hosted on state servers, threatening privacy. The introduction of the internet has also resulted in the evolution of the prosumer, who is involved in the design and manufacturing of products and services, but who may also be at risk of losing privacy to large corporations and governments. While globalization has increased competition among governments to attract investment, it has also led to the centralization of power in a digital space. This thesis suggests that the adoption of blockchain technology, which allows for decentralized and secure data storage, can restore the balance of power in the relationship between citizens and government and protect privacy, transforming the current state-controlled money institution into the ability to live in a parallel society under voluntary acts, taking responsibility for risks, and regaining civil rights.

Keywords

Bitcoin, State, money, society, blockchain, civil rights

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 30. 1. 2023

Thesis defence

• Date of defence: 8. 2. 2023
• Supervisor: Ing. Mgr. Dominik Stroukal, Ph.D.
• Reader: Mgr. Jan Gazda, Ph.D.

CEVRO Institute

Master programme / field:
Philosophy, Politics, Economics / Philosophy, Politics, Economics