Lloyds becomes the first UK bank to join WaveBL with a trade digitalization deal
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One of the leading UK banks, Lloyds, recently became the first bank in the country to enter into a partnership with WaveBL electronic trade documentation platform. Because of the deal, Lloyds’ clients will now be able to transfer blockchain-based Bills of Lading across a network of members in 136 different countries around the world.
The move to increase the efficiency and safety of trade
Bills of Lading are issued by carriers when sellers dispatch goods to an end customer. As such, they act as receipts for the shipped goods. Then, once the payment for the goods is received, the Bill of Lading is released to the buyer. This allows them to claim the product once it arrives.
At this time, Bills of Lading are typically still in paper form. However, looking into the future, Lloyds wants to make them fully digital, and the new partnership with WaveBL will allow the bank to enable quick and easy transfer of documents via blockchain-based eBLs. The service will be available between organizations that make up the WaveBL network, which currently has members in 136 countries.
Not only that, but the network also includes four out of the world’s ten largest container shipping carriers as its members.
According to Lloyds, this means that eBLs will be able to be passed between buyers and sellers in mere minutes, while paper versions usually take days to cover the physical distance. Furthermore, doing things this way will eliminate the risk of forgery, theft, or loss of paper versions. Also, it will reduce the environmental impact, which is also a noteworthy side-effect of the new method.
Lloyds expands existing suite of digital trade documentation
Commenting on the new development, Lloyds’ head of trade and working capital products, Rogier van Lammeren, said that the bank’s clients will now have easy access to a global platform for eBLs. This will complement the bank’s existing suite of digital trade documentation solutions. As a result, the bank’s clients will be able to capitalize on any opportunity quickly and securely.
He added that collaboration and innovation are two key factors that will support greater adoption, and the partnership with WaveBL is an example of both of those factors in action.
The reduction of the environmental impact that Lloyds mentioned to comes simply from its reduced need to rely on paper, which will still serve to help sustainability efforts. Furthermore, it forms part of its pledge to the Future of International Trade Alliance’s eBLs declaration, signed in October 2023.
