While International Business Machines (NYSE: IBM) is not typically viewed as a tech company at the bleeding edge, blockchain is one area where Big Blue is leading the way. A recent survey of company founders, executives, managers, and IT leaders pegged IBM as the overwhelming leader, a result that bodes well for IBM's nascent blockchain business.IBM's blockchain efforts received another boost on Wednesday, when the company announced that four additional banks were joining its ongoing initiative, started in 2016 along with UBS, to build a global blockchain-based trade finance platform.