ZIM bringing blockchain technology into shipping

Israeli shipping company Zim Integrated Shipping Services (ZIM) has wrapped up the first pilot of paperless Bills-of-Lading based on blockchain technology.

During the trial, conducted in cooperation with Sparx Logistics and Wave Ltd., the participants issued, transferred and received original electronic documents using the Wave Application. The pioneering pilot, first of its kind led by an ocean carrier, saw the containers, shipped by Sparx Logistics from China to Canada, delivered to the consignees “without a hitch”.

ZIM, which is pioneering the new solution following a long market analysis, said that it is convinced that the blockchain technology and the Wave application can be the solution that will drive the trade to the digital era.

The new blockchain-based system uses distributed ledger technology to ensure that all parties can issue, transfer, endorse and manage shipping and trade related documents through a secure decentralized network. The application is free for Shippers, Importers and Traders and requires no IT or operational changes.

“I’m proud that ZIM leads the way in introducing blockchain technology to the shipping world, and congratulate our partners in this exciting initiative, Sparx Logistics and Wave Ltd,” Eli Glickman, ZIM CEO, said.

“While we are still in the process of evaluating the technology, we are confident that this type of forward-looking ideas will advance our industry as a whole towards a more efficient and modern phase,” Eyal Ben-Amram, ZIM CIO, added.