THE FEATURE Public or Private? Blockchain Distinctions Are Falling Out of Fashion "Convergence" may mean different things to different people in blockchain, but it's a word that's appearing more and more in public rhetoric of late. For some, it simply means that innovations developed on a public blockchain powered by a cryptocurrency can be leveraged on a private blockchain used by enterprises, and vice versa. But to others, the rise of the term shows that the lines between these categories, once starkly drawn, are starting to fade. As companies start to recognize the merits of public chains; as new technology enables different types of ledgers to communicate with each other; and as central banks consider issuing digital versions of their fiat currencies that could be used to settle trades in blockchain assets; nomenclature is evolving to fit the times. "I would like to see in a year from now for most people to think it's absurd to say 'private networks' or 'public networks,'" John Wolpert, the former blockchain lead at IBM, said at Consensus 2018.
Back in 2015, the industry needed to diverge into public and private spheres, Wolpert said. But to him, it's becoming clear that the industry is now heading the other way. | 
