August 4, 2020
Blockchain and Internal Control: The COSO Perspective
As blockchain becomes mainstream, it is appropriate to focus on how this technology intersects with an entity’s internal control. With careful implementation and integration, the distinctive capabilities of blockchain can be leveraged to create more robust controls for organizations. Blockchain-enhanced tools also have the potential to promote operational efficiency and effectiveness, improve reliability and responsiveness of financial and other reporting, and elevate compliance with laws and regulations. But blockchain also creates new risks and the need for new controls. The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission’s (COSO) Internal Control — Integrated Framework provides an effective and efficient approach that can be leveraged to design and implement controls to address the unique risks associated with blockchain.
“Blockchain and Internal Control: The COSO Perspective” provides perspectives for using the 2013 Framework to evaluate risks related to the use of blockchain in the context of financial reporting and to design and implement controls to address such risks. It is intended to help inform decisions regarding oversight, risks, and internal control over financial reporting (ICFR). The paper also should be of value to the various stakeholders involved in financial reporting, within the context of their own environments.