EXCLUSIVE – Blockchain in cross-border payments will be big in 2018. At least that's what IBM's Rajesh Venkatraman, director of worldwide payments solutions sales at IBM, thinks. "Blockchain technology has many applications, but I believe cross-border payments is especially going to see tremendous traction," he told Bank Innovation. Perhaps that's also because IBM has started numerous pilots in this area. Earlier this fall, it announced a collaboration with startup Stellar, which uses blockchain technology to connect fiat currencies to enable instant international transfers.

Spouting statistics about China's breathtaking urbanization does little to convey the speed of the transformation sweeping the country. Knowing that it used more cement in three years than the US used in 100, or that six of the 10 tallest skyscrapers opening this year will open in China, or that entire cities sit empty, is fascinating, but not terribly visceral. No, if you want to really appreciate the change, look at photos of China's cities before things went nuts. Dheera Venkatraman does just that in his series Time Traveling In China, comparing photos from the past to scenes from today. Entire cities rise from the countryside, and skyscrapers stand alongside ancient monuments.