Hearing a lot about Blockchain but no clue what it really is about? Or are you starting "to get it" but wonder how to apply Blockchain concepts to your business? In this book Willem Vermeend and Louis de Bruin bring you up to speed with the basics of Blockchain, cover real life examples and help you how to get involved or start a Blockchain project. With their combined extensive experience in the world of finance, business, government and Blockchain these writers help you to get beyond the buzzwords and get a clear understanding of Blockchain and how it can help your business. Starting with the background and business drivers behind Blockchain the writers explain the phenomenon in plain language for everyone to understand. Using practical examples, Vermeend and de Bruin bring you to a level of understanding that takes you beyond the hype. You will discover about * The history of Blockchain * Technology basics * Business basics * How to start with Blockchain * Real life examples * And links to lots of resources on the internet In the preface Mr Dijsselbloem, president of the Eurogroup, compares Blockchain to the innovations ushered in by the World Wide Web 25 years ago - we are now at the cusp of a development with equal impact, something that happens only once in a generation. This book helps you to master Blockchain - a key requirement to be in control of your future. As Blockchain is evolving on a dailty basis, this publication is also available an online as a Smart Book that allows us to keep it up to date. Please check back regularly on for the latest developments in the world of Blockchain. Willem Vermeend is an active internet entrepreneur and investor in disruptive technologies. In addition, he is a professor of economics at the Open University in the Netherlands and member of the national steering committee Smart Industry and FinTech. Vermeend is also on the supervisory board of various companies and author of several best sellers in the area of smart technology, economics and public finance. From 1994-2002 he was State Secretary of Finance and Minister of Social Affairs and Labour in the Dutch cabinet. Louis de Bruin leads the Blockchain practice for IBM's Global Business Services in Europe. From its inception, Louis has been active at the forefront of the Blockchain revolution and has been leading multiple ground breaking Blockchain projects based on the Linux foundations Hyperledger technology. He combines vision with hands-on experience and is a frequent publisher and seminar speaker on Blockchain and guest lecturer at universities on this topic. With Willem Vermeend he drives the Blockchain curriculum at Techruption, the field lab of the Brightlands Smart Services Campus. (www.brightlands.com). Currently Louis is working on a Ph.D. thesis on Blockchain.