Blockchains have been heavily linked with cryptocurrencies but that is not the only functionality they have. The technology is able to manage and move information at a fraction of the costs. It allows to account for products as they are moving through the suppliers until the point of sale.
There are multiple companies that are trying to use this new technology to improve different supply chains. Currently IBM and Maersk are working to revolutionize the shipping industry. Historically this has been a pain point for companies that increasingly have operations in multiple countries. This trillion dollar industry can be helped in matter of payments (M2M, B2B), traceability, fraud prevention and product safety amongst others.
The fashion industry is also seemingly ready to see the blockchain change its procedures. The fashion industry produces billions of dollars in environmental damages from its raw materials and their products going to landfills months after production. Blockchain can help the industry create a circular economy in which people are rewarded for returning or recycling their used clothes. It could also help in the first step of the production per se, the creative process. Hundreds of cases come up of designer fraud. Blockchain can help designers protect their intellectual property and then connect with producers through decentralized networks and follow the production process up until the point of sale. Lastly it could also help with the prevalence of child labor by worker identification that ensures all labor comes from legal sources.
Let me know what other supply chains the blockchain can change!
Crypto Lord
