Standard Chartered Signs Up with IBM-Maersk Blockchain Shipping Platform

TradeLens, the blockchain based platform easing shipping activities across the globe, has enrolled Standard Chartered as its first bank member.

The platform was developed by IBM and Danish logistics enterprise Maersk. The London-based bank issued the update three days ago, with international trade chief, Michael Spiegel, pointing out that digital ecosystems such as TradeLens have the capability to foster sustainability plan of several stakeholders in global trade.

TradeLens, initially rolled out by IBM and Maersk in April 2018, is a worldwide supply chain solution with emphasis on containerized freight and logistics.

The company is run by offering standards-derived open APIs that facilitate supply chain info to be unalterably traced and given access through a permissioned blockchain.

As a partaking organization, Standard Chartered shall verify the veracity of shipments in real-time utilizing records safely shared between organizations in the network.

In addition to the first bank enrolled earlier this week, TradeLens has over 150 members including global port and terminal handlers, intermodal providers, ocean carriers, freight forwarders, customers authorities, government bodies, logistics companies and cargo owners.

As of date, the platform has handled data of more than 15 million containers across the globe, recording hundreds of thousands of supply chain activities and several thousands of records every week.

Along with blockchain, TradeLens utilizes the Internet of Things (IoT) and sensor info for the tracking of a series of parameters, from temperature control to container weight.

Aarthi Fernandez, COO of Standard Chartered trade for Singapore and South East Asia, and international head of trade operations, explained the complexities of international trade:

“The trade ecosystem has complex processes, slow turnaround times, high paper-based manual documentation and limited connectivity between the various parties involved and it remains a major pain point in the centuries-old trade finance industry.”

Last month, Indonesia’s customs became the 11th member of TradeLens consortium. Other members of the TradeLens consortium include custom authorities from Azerbaijan, Thailand and Canada, among others.

In the same month, the US Federal Maritime Commission had given an antitrust clearance to five US based members of Tradelens consortium to share info regarding the US supply chain activities.