Major Turkish Terminals Join IBM and Maersk's Blockchain Shipping Platform

TradeLens — the blockchain shipping platform created by IBM and Danish logistics giant Maersk — has signed on a major Turkish-owned international terminals operator.

TradeLens is a global supply chain management platform designed for containerized freight and logistics, which was first launched by IBM and Maersk back in April 2018. 

It works by providing standards-based open APIs that allow supply chain data to be immutably and securely tracked and shared using a permissioned blockchain.

Turkish-owned YILPORT Holding — which operates 22 terminals and 6 inland terminals across 11 countries — reportedly began integrating data from its Gebze and Gemport terminals in Turkey with Tradelens in July 2020. 

Now that integration is complete, the terminals operator will be able to access data flows to help with the more efficient management of assets and containerized cargo.

Six main messages will reportedly be operational in the API-supported data exchanges between Yilport and the platform: "gate in, gate out, vessel load, vessel discharge, actual load date list and actual discharge date list.”

Via TradeLens, this container shipping-related data is accessible on the permissioned blockchain for a range of different stakeholders across the supply chain, such as shippers, agencies, port operators, customs authorities or financial service providers.

IBM and Maersk’s pioneering initiative has been engaged in coordinating various government agencies and customs authorities from across the globe, attracting participants from Indonesia, Thailand, Azerbaijan, the United States and Canada, among others.

As recently reported, blockchain technology is being advocated as a key tool for enterprises, organizations and even governments to develop more resilient value chains going forward after the COVID-19 crisis. 

The World Economic Forum recently published a report looking into the deployment of blockchain-based solutions for supply chains, whose fragility was starkly exposed during the pandemic — as for instance with various commodity markets, or PPE and medical supplies. 

The forum also released a blockchain deployment toolkit designed to assist governments and businesses in adapting their supply chains to the current economic climate and upheavals in global trade.