<commit_before>---

copyright:
  years: 2016

---

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# About blockchain
{: #ibmblockchain_overview}
*Last updated: 18 July 2016*
{: .last-updated}

## What is blockchain?
{: #what}

Blockchain is a technology for a new generation of transactional applications that establishes trust, accountability and transparency, while streamlining business processes. It is a design pattern made famous by bitcoin, but its practical uses extend far beyond cryptocurrency exchanges. With blockchain, we can reimagine the most fundamental business exchanges, and open the door to a new world of digital interactions.

Blockchain has the potential to vastly reduce the cost and complexity of cross-enterprise business processes. Its distributed ledger makes it easier to create cost-efficient business networks, where virtually anything of value can be tracked and traded, without requiring a central point of control. The application of this emerging technology is showing great promise across a broad range of business applications. For example, blockchain networks allow securities trades to be settled in minutes, instead of days. Blockchain can also help companies streamline the flow of goods and payments, and enable manufacturers to reduce product recalls by easily sharing production logs with Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and regulators.

## Key terms
{: #keyterms}
The following terms are instrumental in gaining a holistic understanding of blockchain concepts:

**Transactor**: A network participant connected to the blockchain through a node, that issues transactions from the client side by leveraging an SDK or API.

**Transaction**: A request by a transactor to the blockchain to execute a function on the ledger.  Transactions types include deploy/invoke/query and are implemented through the chaincode functions set forth in the fabric's API contract.  <!---Chaincode implements the functions set forth in the fabric's API contract.  --->

**Ledger**: A sequence of cryptographically-linked blocks, containing transactions and the current world state.  In addition to data from previous transactions, the ledger (blockchain) also contains the data for currently-running chaincode applications.

**World state**: A key-value database that chaincodes may use to store state when executed by a transaction.
<commit_msg>Update ibmblockchain_overview.md<commit_after>---

copyright:
  years: 2016

---

{:new_window: target="_blank"}
{:shortdesc: .shortdesc}
{:codeblock: .codeblock}
{:screen: .screen}
{:pre: .pre}


# About blockchain
{: #ibmblockchain_overview}
*Last updated: 18 July 2016*
{: .last-updated}

## What is blockchain?
{: #what}

Blockchain is a technology for a new generation of transactional applications that establishes trust, accountability and transparency, while streamlining business processes. It is a design pattern made famous by bitcoin, but its practical uses extend far beyond cryptocurrency exchanges. With blockchain, we can reimagine the most fundamental business exchanges, and open the door to a new world of digital interactions.

Blockchain has the potential to vastly reduce the cost and complexity of cross-enterprise business processes. Its distributed ledger makes it easier to create cost-efficient business networks, where virtually anything of value can be tracked and traded, without requiring a central point of control. The application of this emerging technology is showing great promise across a broad range of business applications. For example, blockchain networks allow securities trades to be settled in minutes, instead of days. Blockchain can also help companies streamline the flow of goods and payments, and enable manufacturers to reduce product recalls by easily sharing production logs with Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and regulators.

## Key terms
{: #keyterms}
The following terms are instrumental in gaining a holistic understanding of blockchain concepts:

**Transactor**: A network participant connected to the blockchain through a node, that issues transactions from the client side by leveraging an SDK or API.

**Transaction**: A request by a transactor to the blockchain to execute a function on the ledger.  Transaction types include deploy/invoke/query and are implemented through the chaincode functions set forth in the fabric's API contract.  <!---Chaincode implements the functions set forth in the fabric's API contract.  --->

**Ledger**: A sequence of cryptographically-linked blocks, containing transactions and the current world state.  In addition to data from previous transactions, the ledger (blockchain) also contains the data for currently-running chaincode applications.

**World state**: A key-value database that chaincodes may use to store state when executed by a transaction.

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