Drip Capital, Inc., a cross-border digital trade finance platform, has announced a collaboration with TradeLens, a blockchain enabled digital platform, to provide easy access to credit for small and medium businesses (SMBs) across the world.
International trade is the backbone of the global economy. However, it continues to work with inefficient paper-intensive processes. Even today, most of the cross-border documents are exchanged physically, delaying the transaction by weeks. Lack of digital records also limits SMBs’ access to formal finance, restricting their growth trajectory.
This collaboration will assist Drip in its mission to simplify global trade. TradeLens, through its network of connected carriers, issues electronic bills of lading (eBL), which eliminates paper-based BLs that are a key feature of all international trade transactions. Drip hopes to use these blockchain-enabled documents to provide SMBs with financing faster and in a more secure manner. Elaborating on the collaboration, Pushkar Mukewar, Co-Founder and CEO, Drip Capital said, “We at Drip are committed to making global trade easy and accessible for small businesses. Many stakeholders in the global supply chain support TradeLens, and we are thrilled to collaborate with them. Their blockchain-enabled solutions will allow us to offer enhanced customer experience through digital, secure and efficient processes.”
For TradeLens, the alliance opens new opportunities to scale their business and connect with various stakeholders to digitally transform the global supply chain. Daniel Wilson, Head, Strategy and Operations, GTD Solutions and TradeLens platform shared, “Simplifying trade for SMBs is a shared objective for TradeLens and Drip Capital, and we are excited to have a leading-edge solution join our ecosystem. The TradeLens eBL can help Drip Capital drive for greater efficiency in trade finance for all involved parties.”
“Drip Capital has enhanced the export/import finance business for the SMBs,” said Bimal Kanal, Director, Network for South Asia, GTD Solution, and the TradeLens platform. “Collaborating with TradeLens as a network partner opens new opportunities for shippers as well as Drip Capital for digitising documentation and ownership of the cargo. With more and more partners joining the TradeLens network, we are steadily moving towards strengthening the network that will benefit more stakeholders and rapidly digitise the global supply chains,” added Kanal.
