Foxconn to blaze the trail: Blockchain for electronics
In our IBV Report on Blockchain for Electronics released earlier this month, we stated:
Trailblazers report that blockchains will help them reduce the frictions causing complexity in their industry. They have identified inaccessible information, restrictive regulation and invisible threats as the top frictions that blockchains could mitigate.
To begin, Trailblazers identified use cases with the greatest potential benefits of time, cost and risk. Blockchains can be used for asset and inventory management and component provenance to improve visibility across the supply chain and achieve these benefits while enabling organizations to explore new business models.
Now, we find out one of the world’s largest electronics companies is squarely focused on blockchain not just as an enabler but also as a business.
Foxconn — the well known manufacturer of Apple’s iPhone and a host of other electronics — “showed off blockchain prototype that resulted in $6.5m in loans being originated to members of its massive supply chain. The company has since laid out plans for a global network of nodes that could help non-bank lenders make direct loans in supply chains globally” according to an article from CoinDesk (link)
They’re calling it “Chained Finance.” It will be designed to connect non-bank lenders with suppliers who don’t typically deal directly with banks. We noted this use case in our infographic:
However, Foxconn’s stated aspirations go much further. They’d like to expand use of Blockchain’s up and down the supply chain. Another use case example IBM’s Institute for Business Value Report: “Blockchain benefits for electronics: Taming complexity with better supply chain visibility” centered on production tracking — which allowed OEM’s a much better understanding of the path from production line to destination.
We have four more use cases we expect the world’s most innovative electronics companies to pursue. I’ll tell you more about them in my next Blockchain post on Brand Protection. But for now, if you needed a sign that Blockchain for Electronics was real, consider this it.
IBV Report: Blockchain for Electronics
Coindesk article: Foxconn Reveals Plan for Blockchain Supply Chain Domination
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