The state of the art of the electronic bill of lading

Abstract

Background: The shipping industry is widely regarded as a slow adapting industry, for any innovation to be made there needs to be a real demand. One of these innovations is the electronic Bill of Lading. The need for an alternative to the expensive and slow traditional Bill of Lading has been rising since the beginning of the century. Now the digital revolution naturally introduced the electronic Bill of Lading, but its unclear legal status and different regulations in different countries make it hard to establish a worldwide solution. Nevertheless, there has been progress and the current focus on standardization along with the many advantages of blockchain technology may take it a step closer to a worldwide adoption. Methods: This paper aims to provide information about the most relevant providers of electronic bills of lading, with a clear focus on the underlying technology, in order to make a grounded analysis about each technological solution individually and in general. Results and Conclusions: The information presented was gathered by searching existing literature and public information from the technology providers, focusing on the technology and avoiding law matters.