Blockchain solutions spending in Asia/Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) is forecast to hit $2.4 billion by 2022, according to an April 23 report from United States-based market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC).
IDC's Worldwide Semiannual Blockchain Spending Guide provides an analysis of spending data from the emerging blockchain sector from a regional, vertical industry, use case, buyer and technology perspective.
The report forecasts a sharp uptick in blockchain solutions spending in the region this year — predicting APEJ spending will hit almost $523.8 million in 2019, up 83.9% from $284.8 million in 2018.
For the 2018-2022 forecast period, ICC expects a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 77.5%, culminating at an estimated $2.4 billion by 2022.
According to a statement from Ashutosh Bisht, senior research manager for customer insights and analysis at IDC, the financial sector — where the blockchain economy is better established — accounts for about half of the total spending throughout the forecast period.
For 2019, banking, securities and investment services, as well as insurance industries, are thus expected to spend $294.8 million out of the $523.8 million forecast figure in 2019.
Over the five-year period, the infrastructure sector is predicted to see the fastest blockchain solutions spending growth, with a five-year CAGR of 99.6% — followed by the distribution and services sector with a CAGR of 83.0%, the report states.
In terms of individual blockchain use cases, IDC predicts that trade finance and post trade/transaction settlements, as well as cross border payments and settlements, will see the most investment in 2019 — $82.1 million and $79.0 million respectively. The largest investor in both is expected to be the banking industry.
According to the report, the APEJ contributes around 18.4% of the overall global spending on blockchain in 2019, and is ranked third after Western Europe (23.7%) and the United States (the highest spender, at 37.6%. Within the APEJ, China contributes around 70% of the overall spending in 2022.
As Cointelegraph has reported, IDC’s March 2019 forecast for blockchain solutions spending across all countries worldwide predicted that the combined figure would hit $2.9 billion in 2019 — an 88.7% increase from the previous year.
A separate report later in March forecast that within the U.S., blockchain spending will hit $41 billion by 2025 — up from its current level of $3.12 billion.