ne more trade experiment based on blockchain tested the fruits of success today as Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) claimed successful completion of a global trade transaction tracked over blockchain. The news was announced by CBA a few hours back, and it highlights the growing appeal of blockchain in the sector of global trade.
According to its announcement CBA partnered five Australian and international supply chain leaders for this experiment. The task of experiment was to send 37,000 pounds of almonds from Australia to Germany while tracking the progress of consignment over a shared network that would utilize the power of blockchain, distributed ledger technology (DLT) and Internet of Things (IoT). And the experiment completed successfully in a highly efficient manner.
The Port of Melbourne was starting point of consignment. Its Chief Financial Officer Gerhard Ziems said about the experiment:
“Since the expansion of globalisation, global supply chains have continued to become more complex. This project is unique as it looks to re-imagine how the supply chain communicates and shares information. Simple access to this information provides us with an ability to better utilise our assets and provide customers with better, more efficient services.”
In a separate development few months ago we had heard that CBA was working with Wells Fargo on a blockchain based system that would track cross-border shipments of cotton in real-time. The multinational bank, which is one of the ‘Big Four’ banks of Australia, had last year also revealed its plans to issue bonds over a blockchain based system.