Assessing the impact of blockchain adoption on audit practice: A qualitative case study

Abstract

The increase of Blockchain-based projects and cryptocurrency adoption raise new challenges for audit firms, by driving changes within the audit practice. Based on a qualitative case study, this paper aims to evaluate the impact of Blockchain’s deployment on audit process and profession and underline their future outlooks. From a sample of seven expert interviews, our findings show that the process of auditing Blockchain assets requires the development of new technical tools and competencies. Audit professions are undergoing inevitable changes, shifting towards an advisory and IT-driven role. However, risks relative to security and regulations remain and bring uncertainties that call for prudency.