WE-TRADE-DLT
we.trade Hyperledger Fabric SME trade finance ceased June 2022.
Définition
we.trade history + features : (1) Founded 2017 by 9 European banks (Deutsche Bank + HSBC + KBC + Natixis + Nordea + Rabobank + Santander + Societe Generale + UniCredit), live launched July 2018. (2) Architecture : IBM Hyperledger Fabric permissioned DLT, IBM provider technology + cloud infrastructure (IBM Blockchain Platform + IBM Cloud). (3) Products : Bank Payment Undertaking (BPU - payment commitment from buyer's bank to seller's bank similar to L/C but lighter), BPU Financing (early payment of BPU), Auto-Settlement (automatic payment release on smart contract triggers like shipment confirmation). (4) Target : European SMEs trade finance (typically underserved traditional L/C + bank guarantees expensive for SMEs), open account trade with DLT-enabled visibility + smart contract automation reduces risk. (5) Customer base : ~5+ European banks acted as Provider Banks giving access to ~5000+ SME corporate clients. (6) Cessation June 2022 : we.trade ceased operations citing financial sustainability challenges + lack of sufficient transaction volume to cover platform operating costs, IBM partnership dissolved, banks consortium dissolved. (7) Lessons : DLT trade finance value proposition challenged - smart contracts + DLT add cost + complexity vs traditional bank infrastructure, ROI difficult justify especially for SMEs segment (low margins, slow adoption), regulatory + legal acceptance digital documents (e-BoL, e-BoE) still maturing 2024+ via MLETR-based legal reforms (UK ETDA 2023 + Singapore ETA 2021 + multiple). (8) Broader impact : Marco Polo + Contour + we.trade + Komgo + multiple subsequent shutdowns illustrate consensus DLT-only trade finance not commercially viable, future digital trade finance likely SaaS + APIs + selective DLT use cases rather than full DLT platforms.
Origine
we.trade founded 2017 par 9 banks European consortium ; live July 2018 ; ceased operations juin 2022 ; IBM partnership dissolved.
Exemple en contexte
Belgian SME exports cheese to Spanish retailer EUR 50K via we.trade ~2020 : both buyer + seller onboarded we.trade via their respective banks (KBC + Caixabank) ; seller raises BPU request, buyer's bank Caixabank issues BPU EUR 50K via we.trade smart contract Hyperledger Fabric ; seller ships goods + records shipment confirmation in we.trade, smart contract triggers Auto-Settlement at delivery confirmation, KBC credits seller EUR 50K, Caixabank debits buyer.
Termes liés
- Marco Polo Network — similar ceased DLT trade.