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From Transactions to Records: Reconceptualizing Blockchain Systems through a Lifecycle Lens

Author

Listed:
  • Tom Barbereau
  • Ruggero Montalto
  • Christian Beyer

Abstract

Current blockchain research and analytics tend to prioritize observable on-chain transactions, obscuring the processes through which cryptocurrencies are created, publicised, retained, and disposed of. In response, this paper considers distributed ledger technologies from records management principles in ISO 15489-1:2016. Setting off by specifying the parallels -- that is transactions as "records", crypto-asset units as "information assets", and blockchains as "aggregations" -- we introduce a seven-stage lifecycle for blockchain data. We apply the framework to Bitcoin, a fungible token, and a non-fungible token. On this basis, we argue that blockchain systems are not merely transactional infrastructures but record management systems with distinctive characteristics. We discuss how the on-chain/off-chain boundary and privacy-enhancing technologies can complicate lifecycle visibility, with particular relevance for crypto-crime research and investigation. As a meta-level framework, the lifecycle perspective enables positioning existing research, decomposing legal, regulatory, technological, and operational challenges by stage, and informing lifecycle-aware approaches to blockchain governance, analytics, and regulation.

Suggested Citation

  • Tom Barbereau & Ruggero Montalto & Christian Beyer, 2026. "From Transactions to Records: Reconceptualizing Blockchain Systems through a Lifecycle Lens," Papers 2606.10631, arXiv.org.
    • Handle: RePEc:arx:papers:2606.10631
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    References listed on IDEAS

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