Asian Development Bank Settles Its First LC Transaction Using Standard Chartered-Backed Contour Bloc
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has settled its first letter of credit (LC) transaction using the Standard Chartered Bank backed Contour blockchain network.
It has been reported that the trade was a part of ADB’s trade and supply chain program and involved Standard Chartered and the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam.
However, Asian Development Bank’s trade settlement also marked the first blockchain-based cross-border LC transaction between Vietnam and Thailand.
According to a Global Trade Review report, the trade involved a $50,000 plastic shipment sent from Thailand’s SCG Plastics Co Ltd to Vietnam’s Opec Plastics Joint Stock Company.
Standard Chartered Thailand: First Blockchain Based Cross-Bank Letter of Credit https://t.co/jZADupXn8i @StanChart @ADB_HQ #blockchain #tradefinance #Thailand #Vietnam #banking #financialservices pic.twitter.com/Ik1MyhEsjM — Fintech Singapore (@FintechSIN) September 16, 2020
Although ADB did not specifically mention how blockchain added to the efficiency of the trade settlement, Steven Beck, the bank’s head of trade and supply chain finance, said that the use of blockchain has made trade more efficient while reducing risk and lowering the barriers to entry for small and medium-sized businesses in developing parts of Asia.
Thus, the report said that social distancing measures implemented worldwide due to the ongoing pandemic have proven the importance of trade digitization, driving many major entities involved in international trade and supply chain to implement blockchain in a bid to digitize operations, set aside paperwork, and resume business.
Source: Cointelegraph
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