It’s rare for technology to drastically change a profession, but blockchain, combined with other technologies, has the potential to do so for accountants and auditors.
Blockchain’s structure makes it nearly impossible for record corruption, and it eliminates the need for a trusted third party to create validity for transactions.
A blockchain-based accounting system could allow secure information to be stored and accessed by multiple parties across multiple locations. Such a system could potentially maintain ledgers, self-balance and self-check. Add the ability for computers to learn without being programmed, and tasks formerly performed by humans could be automated.
Education on technology changes poised to reshape the profession is important. Accountants and auditors who learn to adopt these technologies will remain at the forefront of their industry.