Following a successful 2016 trial of blockchain technology in an interbank open account transaction, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has partnered with five international and Australian companies to ship 17 tonnes of almonds from Melbourne, Australia, to Hamburg, Germany, using a new distributed ledger platform built on the Ethereum blockchain.
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The Experiment
Originating in Sunraysia, the shipment made its way to Western Europe in a pioneering experiment that combined a private blockchain, smart contracts and a geotracking Internet of Things (IoT) framework to facilitate end-to-end movement of the almonds. Using the joint solution, the entire process was seamlessly tracked and verified remotely from the point of origin to delivery in real time.
Taking part in the procedure alongside the CBA were Pacific National, Olam Richards Australia Pty Ltd, OOCL Limited, Patrick Terminals and LX Group. The primary purpose of the experiment was to establish a reliable framework for digitization of the three pillars of international commerce, namely documentation, operations/logistics and finance. This was done using a custom blockchain which hosted all information regarding container location, task completion status and shipping documents.
Using the information provided by four IoT devices inside the container, transaction partners could track cargo location in real time and view real-time cargo data, such as temperature and humidity. The information was accessed through the blockchain platform, making it impervious to manipulation.
CBA Managing Director of Industrials and Logistics in Client Coverage Chris Scougall said:
“Our blockchain-enabled global trade platform experiment brought to life the idea of a modern global supply chain that is agile, efficient and transparent. We believe that blockchain can help our partners reduce the burden of administration on their businesses and enable them to deliver best-in-class services to their customers.”
In 2016, the CBA and Wells Fargo
