Abstract
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in promoting the national economy and providing employment opportunities. E-commerce platforms may facilitate transactions between these enterprises. However, transactions on the e-commerce platform are non-face-to-face, strongly virtual, and variable, resulting in SMEs often facing moral hazards and opportunistic behaviors. Blockchain is a distributed ledger consisting of an encryption algorithm, consensus mechanism, and smart contracts, having the characteristics of authenticity, security, transparency, and unforgeability. Thus, the problems faced by SMEs can be resolved by combining e-commerce platforms and blockchain technology. In this study, we first provide a conceptual framework for blockchain-supported e-commerce platforms for SMEs. Second, based on this conceptual framework, we build a total business architecture. Finally, we propose three key applications to illustrate how the platform facilitates SMEs in solving financing and trading problems. This study provides significant guidance for the operation and management of blockchain-supported e-commerce platforms for these enterprises.
Highlights
Blockchain is a distributed ledger consisting of an encryption algorithm, a consensus mechanism, and smart contracts, which have the characteristics of authenticity, unforgeability, and traceability [16,17]
To solve the problems faced by SMEs, we propose a conceptual framework that combines blockchain technology and e-commerce platforms
Blockchain is a distributed ledger consisting of an encryption algorithm, consensus mechanism, and smart contract, which are authentic, unforgeable, and traceable
Summary
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the mainstay of the modern national economy, and they are numerous and widely distributed [1,2,3]. To solve the financing problems faced by SMEs, there are many financing methods related to supply chain finance (SCF), such as accounts receivable financing, prepayment financing, and inventory financing [7,8,9] These financing methods require financial institutions to take considerable effort in verifying the authenticity of bills and check the status of collateral, which increases the cost of enterprise financing [10,11,12]. To the best of our knowledge, this study is an initial work that combines blockchain technology with an e-commerce platform for SMEs to solve the financing and transaction problems of these enterprises.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
