Blockchain-Based E-Commerce: An Evaluation

Abstract

The e-commerce sector has grown beyond predictions with the help of the most recent technological developments, changes in consumer preferences, and the COVID-19 pandemic. E-commerce activities assume a subsidiary role of brick-and-mortar shops with the benefits it offers to all parties, which have also resulted in new problems such as privacy, security, transparency, and costs, unlike traditional businesses. Blockchain technology is among the promising technologies in solving the problems of the e-commerce sector with its decentralized structure that does not require third-party intermediaries, and its features (such as privacy, immutability, security, transparency, and auditability). In this study—which examines, under five titles, the benefits that blockchain can offer to e-commerce—it is concluded that blockchain can reshape e-commerce activities by enabling integrated e-commerce systems that include all parties and offering low transaction costs, high transaction speed, traceability of transactions, strong security standards, and low risks. In this direction, blockchain-based e-commerce platforms can push existing e-commerce platforms into the background.