Blockchain-based digital trade platform for SMEs to debut in 2018

Singapore

SINGAPORE'S first blockchain-based digital-trade platform for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) will be ready come the first quarter of the new year. Called Fasttrack Trade (FTT), it will enable SMEs to seek business partners, buy and sell goods and buy insurance on a single platform.

The facility, the result of a partnership between Prudential Singapore and StarHub, is being developed by fintech startup Cites Gestion, with funding from Prudential.

Under the collaboration, StarHub will offer its enterprise customers access to FTT's services; Prudential will offer insurance to cushion them against business risks, the companies said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

With FTT being powered by distributed-ledger technology, a common audit trail can be shared between counterparties on the platform; this means every transaction on it is recorded and traceable, making it safer and cheaper for SMEs to conduct trade transactions and access financing.

The tie-up between Prudential and StarHub is part of a broader plan to create a digital business-to-business (B2B) marketplace that will unite service providers across multiple industries to support the growth of SMEs.

Prudential's chief partnerships distribution officer Stephanie Simonnet said: "We are creating a digital ecosystem based on cross-industry collaboration that will transform commerce and drive the growth of enterprises. Convenient and affordable access to non-traditional sources of funding and to protection will help smaller businesses fulfil their growth ambitions and manage risk."

Looking ahead, the aim is to open up FTT to SMEs beyond Singapore. Agnes Hugot, chief executive and co-founder of Cites Gestion, said: "Today, there is a huge trade financing gap in South-east Asia because of a lack of financing and access to business services, especially for smaller businesses. A digital platform such as FTT could boost the trade corridors in South-east Asia, strengthen business communities and bring about significant economic benefits to everyone."