SINGAPORE, Dec. 15, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Last week #dltledgers, Asia's leading blockchain platform for trade execution, and Bolero International, the leading trade finance digitisation provider, signed a formal partnership agreement. With this deal, for the very first time, importers and exporters will be able to execute physical trades, end-to-end, without sending paper documents.
The agreement, signed last month, allows corporates, trading companies, and banks to collaborate in an entirely new way. While many of these organisations have already digitised their internal operations, they still collaborate with external parties using email, telephone, and physical trade documents. Bolero's P&I Club-approved electronic Bill of Lading will now underpin the #dltledgers platform for both new and existing customers, meaning trades can be executed end-to-end without the use of physical documents. For companies looking to future-proof, streamline their trade operations, and shorten trade and working capital cycle times, this represents a major shift.
The impact of the global pandemic has been far reaching, not least on international trade. One result has been a widening of the already-existing $1.5T trade finance gap. Economists have warned that this number could grow to $5T – an all-time high. Such a shortage of capital would inevitably impact the movement of goods around the globe, which could include essentials like vaccines and food. For a limited time, to help businesses fight back and support the shift to digital trade execution, #dltledgers and Bolero are offering customers free access to the platform.
"It's heartening to see the power of collaboration in trying times like these," – says Sunil Senapati, Director of Trade Finance for APAC at Bolero. "By leveraging each other's capabilities, we believe we've taken a step in the right direction that will offer immediate benefits to the wider global trade community. Our aim is to improve the flow of commodities across geographies, while supporting the injection of much-needed liquidity into international trade transactions. By partnering with #dltledgers, one of the front-runners in global trade digitisation, we hope to increase transparency at all levels in trade – physical, financial and informational".
Farooq Sidiqi, CEO at #dltledgers added, "The addition of a P&I-approved electronic BL means that #dltledgers can now provide true, end-to-end digitisation for its customers, enabling them to make a complete shift from paper-based trade execution to digital. As well as delivering immediate efficiencies and cost savings, this is helping our users to prepare for the next wave of data-driven trade finance, which is much closer to reality than many realise. Here in Singapore, it will also help them stay one step ahead of compliance and regulatory changes. With the new code of conduct announced last month by the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS), supported by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), this is an increasingly important consideration for anyone in the sector".
Trade is one of the last major industries to experience large-scale digitisation, and in recent years it has attracted a growing number of startup technology providers. Collaboration between market leaders like Bolero and #dltledgers may come as a welcome sign for those tasked with selecting parties and solutions that will enable them to embark on the transfer towards digital trade.
About Bolero International (www.bolero.net)
Bolero International has built a strong reputation and market leadership position in driving the digitisation of global trade. With more than 20 years' experience in trade, maritime and cloud technologies, we have the knowledge, experience and proven track record of helping the industry transition and capitalise on the benefits of digitisation. Our multi-banking trade finance and electronic bills of lading solutions have worldwide recognition and are seamlessly connecting corporates with their logistics partners and financial institutions around the world. Bolero is where the physical and financial supply chains converge. With Galileo, our clients can tap into the Bolero's connected digital eco-system, that is secure, trusted and fully interoperable.
About #dltledgers
#dltledgers is the leading, independent fintech platform for trade and supply chain digitisation. Based in Singapore, the blockchain platform facilitates inter-enterprise collaboration, enabling trading partners to reduce both the cost of doing business and the risk of financing it. Network participants include buyers, sellers, trading companies, and finance providers, as well as carriers, logistics partners, insurers, ports, and a variety of certifying bodies and government agencies. The #dltledgers blockchain platform is a pioneer in enterprise blockchain, having executed over $3 billion worth of live transactions, involving over 400 subscribed traders, 45 banks, and 4500+ ecosystem partners.
