Demystifying Blockchain Technology and its Potential Capacity to Transform Global Trade

Can Blockchain Revolutionize International Trade?

The publication entitled “Can Blockchain revolutionize international trade?” explores how the technology could enhance areas related to the World Trade Organization's work and examines challenges that will have to be tackled to unlock the technology’s potential.

The publication introduces Blockchain technology with a basic explanation of how, as a tamper-proof, decentralized record of transactions, it allows participants to collaborate and build trust with each other.

It describes different classifications of Blockchains and their current and possible applications in the various areas covered by the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.

In doing so, it provides an insight into the extent to which this technology could help with trade facilitation, including how it can hasten the transition to paperless trade transactions.

It considers Blockchain's potential and limits in transforming services by looking at payment systems, insurance and the automation of contracts.

The publication also discusses how Blockchain could help ease the administration of intellectual property rights and enhance government procurement processes.

Other potential benefits identified by the publication include cross-cutting opportunities to reduce trade costs, enhance supply chain transparency and open up new trading opportunities for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

The publication reviews various challenges that must be addressed before the technology can be used on a wide scale and have a significant impact on international trade.

These include issues such as whether the technology can be scaled up for large or complex applications, how immune it is to security threats, to what extent various Blockchain platforms can be used in an integrated manner, and which legal issues need to be ironed out to increase mainstream use of the technology.

The publication calls for a multi-stakeholder dialogue to assess the practical and legal implications of the technology and to develop collective solutions to existing challenges while providing the flexibility for the technology to thrive.

Download: “Can Blockchain revolutionize international trade?”

“While this technology opens interesting opportunities, clearly it also raises legal, regulatory and policy issues that deserve our attention. We need to consider how to spread the opportunities and overcome the challenges. We can only do this if we are in full possession of the facts. We need to fully understand the technology – what it can do and what it can't do. And most importantly for us, we need to understand what it means for international trade,” WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo said at the WTO workshop where the book was launched.

“This requires an informed debate. And it needs to go beyond trade experts. Blockchain is a technology that has the potential to break silos, so we should not create silos in this discussion. We need a debate among all stakeholders – the business community, blockchain experts, government authorities, representatives from other international organizations, and many others as well. With our new publication, and with today's event, we are seeking to inform the debate and bring together this wider community.”

WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo's full remarks on blockchain are available here.

WTO Research Workshop on Blockchain

Blockchain and International Trade: Opportunities, Challenges, and Implications for International Trade Cooperation

Blockchain and distributed ledger technology could have a wide-ranging impact on international trade. The specific features of the technology have the potential to enhance transparency and traceability, and to improve the efficiency of many processes related to international trade, from trade finance, to border procedures, and transportation and logistics.

However, fulfilling this potential will require addressing various technical and regulatory challenges and creating a regulatory environment conducive to the deployment of the technology while mitigating the risks that may arise.

The workshop aimed to initiate a discussion at the WTO on the practical and legal implications of blockchain for international trade. The workshop presented various use cases related to international trade, discussed the potential and limitations of the technology for international trade, and started a reflection on the potential role of the WTO.

Materials from the workshop, including the audio recording of the event, can be found here.

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