Cargo shipping giant Maersk and IBM today announced TradeLens, a technology that applies blockchain to the global supply chain.
TradeLens takes advantage of blockchain, the decentralized public ledger behind such tech as cryptocurrency — to enable global trade to be more efficient and secure. More than 94 companies and organizations are supporting the project in the name of transparency, information sharing, and innovation.
Those 94 organizations are actively involved in or have agreed to participate in the TradeLens platform built on open standards as early adopters. The participants are made up of more than 20 port and terminal operators, including PSA Singapore, International Container Terminal Services Inc, Patrick Terminals, Modern Terminals in Hong Kong, Port of Halifax, Port of Rotterdam, Port of Bilbao, PortConnect, PortBase, terminal operators Holt Logistics at the Port of Philadelphia, and global APM Terminals’ network. That group covers 234 marine ports.
Pacific International Lines (PIL) has joined Maersk Line and Hamburg Süd as global container carriers participating in the solution.
Cargo owners participating include Torre Blanca / Camposol and Umit Bisiklet. And participating freight forwarders include transportation and logistics companies such as Agility, CEVA Logistics, DAMCO, Kotahi, PLH Trucking Company, Ancotrans, and Shipco.
TradeLens uses IBM blockchain technology as the foundation for digital supply chains, empowering multiple trading partners to collaborate by establishing a single shared view of a transaction without compromising details, privacy, or confidentiality. Source