Published in Blockchain Economics: Implications of Distributed Ledgers – Markets, Communications Networks, And Algorithmic Reality

Abstract: Blockchain technology enables entrepreneurs to develop new decentralised governance structures to coordinate human interaction and exchange. That is, blockchain enables exit from political-socioeconomic systems through new forms of property rights protection and enforcement. This chapter examines the economic problem facing entrepreneurs as they use blockchain to cryptosecede and develop the new governance structures of the cryptoeconomy. The analysis draws on institutional and new development economics, arguing that blockchain entrepreneurs face a private economic development problem over complementary ‘protective-tier’ institutional technologies (Leeson and Boettke 2009). This understanding of the parallels between territorial economic development and the cryptoeconomy development helps explain collaboration between blockchain entrepreneurs within governance structures such as hackathons and conferences (Allen 2017). These collaborative governance structures are entrepreneurial efforts of self-governed economic development of the cryptoeconomy.