FedEx Executive Advocates for Industry Blockchain Standards

Rob Carter, the chief information officer of American delivery services company FedEx, has called for uniform standards in the blockchain industry, tech-focused media outlet Computerworld reported on April 25.

Speaking at the Blockchain Global Revolution Conference, Carter argued that mandated standards would help create uniformity for blockchains used in supply chains. He also noted the technology’s ability to improve the tracking of a good’s provenance and streamline the shipping process:

"There is an incredible amount of information moving with an international package. An incredible amount of paperwork [such as] certificates of origin, and certain commodities require specific licenses. That information moves sometimes in digital forms and sometimes paper forms. As we move toward a more digital world, blockchain is where you piece all that together."

FedEx together with two other major international delivery services firms DHL Express and UPS is a member of the Blockchain in Transport Alliance. Last September, the firm joined Hyperledger, an open-source project established to improve cross-industry blockchain technologies. The collaboration will purportedly enable the company to build blockchain-based industry-grade applications, platforms and hardware systems.

In March, UPS and e-commerce technology company Inxeption jointly rolled out a blockchain-powered platform dubbed Inxeption Zippy to improve merchant supply chains. The platform purportedly enables merchants to monitor the entire supply chain from product listing to delivery, ensuring that sensitive data like contract-specific pricing and rates are only accessible to the buyer and seller.