SINGAPORE, May 3, 2021 – dltledgers, the leading independent blockchain platform for trade and supply chain digitisation headquartered in Singapore, announced today their key role in the trial of an electronic Bill of Lading (eBL) between two of the world’s busiest international ports. Backed by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, the trial marked a milestone towards the transformation of the shipping and maritime sector and the digitisation of the Europe-Far East trade route served by both ports.
This development was showcased at the recent Singapore Maritime Technology Conference 2021, where the Senior Minister of State for Transport and Foreign Affairs Chee Hong Tat highlighted in his speech the successful completion of an electronic Bill of Lading (eBL) trial between Singapore and Rotterdam.
“The international shipping industry today suffers from a lack of transparency, inefficiencies, errors and delays, leading to serious loss of revenue. This successful trial has validated our technology. The innovative dltledgers platform enables the digitising of the maritime supply chain through the electronic Bill of Lading,” said Samir Neji, Founder and CEO of dltledgers.
The processing of physical copies of Bills of Lading (BLs) has historically been a bottleneck, hampering greater efficiency and productivity in the maritime sector. The eBL trial has now demonstrated tangible commercial value and saving of time- from an average of six to ten days in the case of hard copies, to less than 24 hours when using an eBL.
The key to the success of the trial was the innovative application of technology. A robust and agile platform powered by blockchain technology was used for the exchange of electronic trade documents, providing all participants in the supply chain with proofs of authenticity and provenance. The secure platform was easily integrated and accessed by each participating entity, demonstrating the interoperability of electronic title transfers between different trade regimes in Singapore and the Netherlands.
“Our easy-to-implement platform was a key differentiator in ensuring the successful and timely completion of the trial. Trade document processing and administration has always been a manual process, adding to the physical cost of shipping a single container. Our platform also reduces the risk of fraud compared to the traditional mode where documents had to be mailed or physically handed over from one party to another “added Neji.
The maritime and shipping sector has much to gain from distributed ledger technologies. A single platform built on the blockchain principle, a distributed ledger centralises information from multiple sources. Its in-built security and visibility lead to a drastic reduction of mistakes and prevent fraud and double financing.
In his speech, the Minister of State also announced an opportunity for startups to apply for a new grant scheme backed by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), in conjunction with Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and the Digital Container Shipping Association. This grant enables digital trade by eliminating the need for hardcopy documents with their inherent inefficiencies. Additionally, the government is encouraging industry solutions providers to step forward to develop and share their proposals for a wider industry adoption of digitisation initiatives in the maritime sector.
Dtlledgers is the developer of the world’s leading customer centric platform for digitising cross-border trade and supply chains. As well as successfully developing the electronic Bill of Lading, dtlledgers is also working on a marketplace aggregator platform that brings together alternative finance providers and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that need working capital and trade financing to run their business.
“The cross-border trade ecosystem has to make a big shift towards digitisation. It is an opportunity for Singapore companies like us to be part of the international agenda to power a positive change in the maritime and shipping industries,” added Samir Neji.
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