The World Economic Forum threw a knockout punch this month when it released its report “The Future of Infrastructure: An Ambitious Look at How Blockchain Can Reshape Financial Services.”1 When Giancarlo Bruno, the World Economic Forum’s Head of Financial Services Industries, stated powerfully and unequivocally, “Rather than stay at the margins of the finance industry, blockchain will become the beating heart of it,”2 the world felt the impact.

Like so many other things that we know are important to do, but which we may struggle to find the time for, reading the roughly 130-page World Economic Forum report may not be at the top of your “to do” list. We wrote this article to reveal, in a user-friendly way, some of the World Economic Forum report’s central findings and key predictions, as well as to give you a sense of some of the potential financial services use cases identified by the World Economic Forum. Among other things, this article covers: (i) the 6 Key Take-Aways from the World Economic Forum Report; (ii) the 5 Characteristics of Promising (Financial Services) Use Cases; (iii) the Top 9 (Financial Services) Blockchain Applications; and (iv) a Closer Look at What Blockchain Can Build (featuring Loan Syndication and Trade Finance).