USC Marshall School of Business announced the launch of the Business of Blockchain Initiative, a major investment to accelerate and scale research, teaching, and industry engagement for the business applications of blockchain and other advanced technologies. The initiative is part of USC President Carol L. Folt’s Frontiers of Computing “moonshot,” a billion-dollar endeavor to expand and infuse advanced computing and its societal implications throughout the university.

“The Business of Blockchain Initiative will position USC students at the forefront of the rapidly evolving advanced computing economy,” said President Folt. “This first-of-its-kind initiative is designed to give our students access to the skills they need to work with decentralized finance and blockchain applications.”

Building on the groundbreaking work of USC Marshall’s institutes, centers, and initiatives — including the VanEck Digital Assets Initiative, Initiative on Digital Competition, and the Randall R. Kendrick Global Supply Chain Institute — the Business of Blockchain Initiative will galvanize research, teaching, and industry collaboration in the sectors experiencing the greatest business and societal disruption. As many of the computing revolution’s most significant effects arise from integrating advanced technologies, the initiative will explore powerful combinations such as blockchain, AI, and the Internet of Things. 

Key domains include:

· Decentralized Finance and Payments: Revolutionizing financial transactions, access, and investing through innovations in decentralized platforms increasing efficiency by reducing the power of intermediaries.

· Regulation: Driving policy and governance change in the fast-evolving realm of decentralized financial systems and new digital securities to promote innovation and to protect consumers.

· Supply Chains: Enhancing tracing and protection of the provenance of goods and services across complex multistage global supply networks with disparate patterns of ownership and different regulatory frameworks.

· Creator Economy: Amplifying the ability of creators and influencers to protect and monetize their intellectual property through novel distribution channels and technologies.

Building on the school’s existing major academia-industry events — like the VanEck Initiative’s annual Blockchain Conference, which saw 1,700 attendees last year — the Business of Blockchain Initiative will further strengthen USC as a global Web3 hub bringing together a dynamic community of developers, investors, academics, and student interest groups. It will also bolster entrepreneurial opportunities for USC students to develop blockchain-related startups and benefit from the doors blockchain opens.

“We have made major strategic investments to position USC Marshall as a world leader in this radically disruptive environment,” said Dean Geoffrey Garrett. “With partnerships across USC and among the influential crypto, DeFi, and creator communities in Los Angeles and beyond, we are harnessing the power of massive, decentralized technologies to unlock financial access, increase supply chain resilience, and empower digital creators — while keeping their consequences for policy and society firmly in view.”