Blockchain technology in Malaysian estate distribution: A systematic review

Abstract

In Malaysia, the process of claiming an estate is quite complicated. It is managed by multiple agencies and a dual legal system, which is costly and time-consuming. Blockchain technology is therefore being considered a good database for consolidating all documents and agencies involved in the estate distribution procedure into a single platform. Even though blockchain technology is becoming increasingly popular, research on how it may be used in the distribution of estate is still lacking. In response to this, we conducted a systematic evaluation on the application of blockchain technology to be implemented in estate distribution in Malaysia. In this paper, we conduct a systematic review to identify, extract, and analyze all relevant publications relating to inheritance within 12 years, between 2010 and 2022 in online databases. This analysis is limited to the papers based on the relevancy of the paper on the subject being studied in respect of blockchain in estate distribution. Of those, 17 were assessed for eligibility, and the remaining three were found useful for this study. A systematic review was conducted to examine the factors causing arrears in the claiming process, blockchain characteristics that may be implemented in estate distribution, applicability of blockchain decision and future implementation. Previous research has investigated and analyzed the use of blockchain in inheritance, but much of it focuses on the wills of the deceased. There are still gap in study for Muslim estate distribution with the procedure included faraid distribution approach. This paper highlights the roles and features of blockchain technology and will assist academics in understanding blockchain technology, especially inheritance-related. Finally, the corresponding solutions and ideas are summarized, and the future development of blockchain technology in estate distribution is analyzed and judged.