The Blockchain Doesn’t Solve Anything About the Coronavirus

In the past few weeks, there has been a flurry of news at the intersection of blockchain and the coronavirus. 

As someone who watches the industry news diligently (via OnCoins), I curated a related collection of such new, and they range into four buckets of activity:

• Scams and fraudulent activities
• Lending computational resources
• Devising blockchain-based solutions 
• Donating funds or material 

Here is the collection of 18 articles, (and I will continue to add to it if you’d like to save this link.

Focus on Blockchain+Coronavirus: Global Crypto Community Comes Out in Full Force Against Coronavirus

• medium.com The Effect of the Coronavirus on Crypto
• cointelegraph by samuel haig Algorand Launches Blockchain-Based Global Coronavirus Survey
• cointelegraph by michael kapilkov Madrid Team Builds Iota-Based Decentralized Information Platform to Combat Coronavirus
• jp buntinx Coronavirus Fraud Pertaining to Bitcoin is on the Rise in the UK
• jp buntinx Tech Giants Come Together to Build a Coronavirus hub With Blockchain Technology
• liam frost Coronavirus ventilators and masks get funding on Ethereum
• adriana hamacher Bitcoin investor faked credentials to promote coronavirus cure
• www.ledgerinsights.com UAE uses blockchain, digital identity to battle Covid-19 – Ledger Insights – enterprise blockchain
• jp buntinx 17-year-old Develops a Coronavirus Information Website and Accepts Bitcoin Donations
• liam frost Binance starts $5 million campaign to fight coronavirus
• robert stevens MIT experts build privacy-first coronavirus tracing app
• cointelegraph by adrian zmudzinski Using Ransomware, Hackers Steal and Publish Medical Data of Firm Researching Coronavirus
• messari.io Ethereum miner redirects processing power toward helping coronavirus research
• jp buntinx Cryptocurrency Donations Bring an Advanced Medical Post for Coronavirus Victims to Italy
• thecontrol.co Grants for Coronavirus Solutions and Support – The Control
• dacxi Coronavirus and its impact on crypto
• daily hodl staff Anonymous Bitcoin and Crypto Supporters Funding Coronavirus Vaccine Effort: Report

Certainly, the first category (scams) is unfortunate and unwanted. 

But the second and third categories are not going to yield anything significant. They are opportunistic publicity-seeking initiatives that are diverting blockchain projects from their original goals of working on blockchain-specific solutions.

The fourth category is a perfect one. This is where the blockchain industry is donating funds or specific material to help mitigate the effects of this terrible virus situation. I wished that most of the activities focused on that, without the diversions of #2 and #3.

The Coronavirus is a medical issue, and it will be solved and resolved by healthcare professionals and researchers, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies. Frankly, the blockchain doesn’t add anything to these efforts that is not already available via more efficient and existing means. It is a stretch for an industry that is already stretched and continuously challenged to prove its usefulness on a daily basis.

I wished the blockchain industry would stay focused on blockchain technology and its deployment rather than become distracted by dreaming solutions to the Coronavirus.