to understand how the abstract utopia of cryptocurrency becomes more than just a business interest, one needs to revisit a slew of successes that have flown under the radar.

Most recently, groups of financial institutions and enterprises (R3, the Linux-led Hyperledger consortium and the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance) have all seen major software milestones.

For example, computing hardware giant Intel last week launched Hyperledger Sawtooth 1.0 to the Hyperledger code repository. Created in partnership with more than 50 coders representing dozens of companies, the software joins the IBM-contributed Hyperledger Fabric and R3’s Corda as the latest blockchain solutions to release a version intended to give developers a sense of confidence.

Building on these solutions, versions of the open-source software platforms that can be monetized have also hit the market.

Last year, IBM launched IBM Blockchain, an enterprise-grade version of the software, and later this quarter, R3 will do the same with its own Corda platform, dubbed Enterprise Corda.

These commercialized versions of open-source software will, in turn, enable a number of industry-specific blockchain applications. Last year, Walmart, Kroger, and Nestle helped launch a food tracking network using IBM Blockchain, and new solutions are expected to be explored this year, according to a representative of the company.

In a similar way, R3’s Corda Enterprise is already in limited use with live applications from both Finastra and HQLAx. Both are expected to be available in the first half of 2018, according to Cooper.

Also, JPMorgan’s Quorum – which has been the most public solution associated with the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance – launched into version 2.0 last November, and for the strength of the team behind the software, it’s worth keeping an eye on!

There are amazing opportunities for investment here, and I can provide guidance and/or consultation!