From Bitcoin to Decentralized Autonomous Corporations: Extending the Application Scope of Decentralized Peer-to-Peer Networks and Blockchains

Inspired by the new technological advancements and the groundbreaking technology at the foundation of cryptocurrencies, organizational structures are expected to evolve and new corporate structures to emerge, based on full decentralization. We posit that the blockchain, i.e., the technology, system and protocol behind and beyond the most popular digital crypto-currencies, will introduce decentralization in many manifestations of our everyday life, especially in cases where an independent trusted third party is needed to ensure and verify operations and transactions. This paper builds upon the blockchain technology and discusses how it could enable fully decentralized forms of business structures to emerge; decentralized autonomous corporations (DACs) are business entities totally based on code; running on the cloud, providing certain services and creating value for their customers. Thus, we argue that DACs could prove a means of decentralizing and automating decision making in organizations.