Blockchain for improving customs compliance

Researchers of Delft University of Technology and of the Erasmus School of Law collaborate in the JUST project to investigate how to improve compliance with customs in supply chains. Part of the research is about the use of blockchain technology for information sharing. 

The scholars support context-aware information sharing between businesses and with customs. Such system ensures that sharing is lawful and that the interests of businesses are protected. In a blockchain, data is stored in different blocks that are linked together. While parties in a supply chain, including customs, are nodes in a network, each party has a copy of the blockchain data. When new data is added, it is distributed to the whole network. Each party can accept or reject the new data according to the rules agreed beforehand. After new data is accepted, it is very hard to change it.

In the research, scholars consider different designs of information sharing systems and determine their advantages and disadvantages to supporting lawful information sharing in supply chains. You can read more about this research is the article Design of a software architecture supporting business-to-government information sharing to improve public safety and security. Combining business rules, Events and blockchain technology

ESC will continue following new developments in the blockchain research. For us, it represents a potential possibility to better cooperate with supply chain partners, to increase end-to-end visibility of the supply chain, and to improve efficiency of businesses.