Commissioned by a consortium, Z/Yen engaged with over seventy people representing developers, regulators, standards bodies, lawyers, financiers, businesspeople, accountants, and potential users, to answer a number of questions:

• What are the potential risks associated with future widespread use of mutual distributed ledgers (MDLs), and what are their implications?
• How do distributed ledgers fit within existing regulatory frameworks? Are existing laws sufficient to cover the activities supported by distributed ledgers, or is new legislation is needed?
• Would MDLs benefit from the development of standards? Which sectors and services might need MDLs most?
• What different paths could be taken to create standards?

In conclusion, “The Missing Links in the Chains” confirms that the establishment of a voluntary standards market may be beneficial in promoting the uptake of MDLs by providing certainty to both users and developers, while assisting regulators in fulfilling their duties. Further consideration is needed on the scope of ‘taxonomies & performance’, ‘data governance & liability’, and ‘commercial governance & liability’. And of course, a big question mark about what group is prepared to pay to take standards forward?