So where does blockchain technology come in and how can it change how firms are managed and coordinated internally? With smart contracts and unprecedented transparency, the blockchain should not only reduce transaction costs inside and outside of the firm, but it should also dramatically reduce agency costs at all levels of management. These changes will in turn make it harder to game the system. So firms could go beyond transaction cost to tackle the elephant in the boardroom—agency cost. Yochai Benkler told us, “What’s exciting to me about blockchain technology is that it can enable people
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