Establishing a globally harmonised digital trade environment

Despite the advance of digital technologies, the vast majority of global trade and supply chains continue to rely on paper forms, analog processes and elementary forms of information exchange, conducted mainly through 40+ official and commercial trade documents.  

This manual data cycle is not only slow, labor intensive, and inefficient, but also prone to errors, inconsistencies, and fraud. While there is broad agreement across both the public and private sectors that digitalising trade could produce many benefits, the process is hampered by a multiplicity of data standards and approaches, as well as legal systems which do not yet fully recognise the validity of electronic records in trade.   

DSI was set up to address these two challenges on the road to a harmonized, digitalized global trading environment by 2026.  We aim to: 

- Make trade faster, cheaper and more secure through digitization and automation. It is about transforming a process that could take a cumulative 12 to 15 days to be executed flawlessly in 48 to 72 hours.

- Enable agility and resilience in supply chains, by improving the quality, timeliness and pooling of data across the entire trade environment.

- Lower costs to serve, and bridge a persistent trade finance gap, particularly in the emerging markets (which stood at $2.5 Trillion in 2022, based on ADB 2023 Trade Finance Gaps, Growth, and Jobs Survey ).

- Support sustainable trade by generating and joining up data related to environmental and social impact.

- Promote inclusion in trade by harmonising trade standards and forms so that even SMEs can navigate the cross-border landscape globally.

- Reduce fraud, regulatory non-compliance and illicit trade that arises due to opaque and non-transparent trade processes. 

Digitalizing trade documentation is an important step that can avoid unnecessary cost, save time, and enable more trade.  McKinsey predicts that adopting eBL (electronic Bills of Lading) alone could save $6.5 billion in direct costs for industry and enable between $30 billion and $40 billion in new global trade volume.

The ICC Digital Standards Initiative (DSI) aims to accelerate the development of a globally harmonised, digitised trade environment, as a key enabler of dynamic, sustainable, inclusive growth.   

We engage the public sector to progress regulatory and institutional reform, and mobilise the private sector on adoption, implementation and capacity building. Our solution lies in the engagement of the entire global trade ecosystem to follow the DSI Roadmap for Digital Trade:

- Digital Standards for Global Trade Transformation: Digital Trade Standards are the building blocks for global interoperability and seamless integration across international supply chains and trade.  We aim to drive transparency and accessibility of trade standards currently in use, and to promote harmonisation and alignment where multiple standards may already exist.  Available tools include an integrated guide to trade data and standards, by document, for the end-to-end supply chain, which will be an indispensable guide for any supply chain player or platform. We also support pilot projects, champion best practices and nurture a learning community of digital trade practitioners and advocates.   

- Technologies and the Trust Supply Chain: While individual supply chains may transact digitally on a single platform according to their own standards, we promote vendor-agnostic and technology-neutral principles that would facilitate trade digitalisation at scale. The application of Zero trust architecture (backed by cryptographically produced verifiability), digital identity for all parties along the supply chain and alignment with global standards in all instances would build a Trust Supply Chain to complement existing physical, financial and information supply chains and simultaneously improve speed, efficiency, and transparency.

- Legal reform, Policy and Regulatory Environment: DSI offers unparalleled support to countries aiming to align with the Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR) framework drafted by UNCITRAL to enable the legal use of electronic transferrable records both domestically and across borders.  In collaboration with The Milken Institute and the Asia Global Institute, DSI has developed the Global Trade Modernisation Index (GTMI), to engage the public and private sector about the building blocks for competitiveness through digital trade.

- Capacity Building: Besides providing a platform for sharing lessons learned and propelling nations forward in a nation’s MLETR alignment journey, DSI holds in-person and virtual capacity-building sessions with targeted public sector officials to help smoothen the adoption process of MLETR. We also developed an online self-paced course - Certificate in Digital Trade Strategy - to equip public and private sector participants with the know-how and ecosystem mindset needed to drive transformative changes through global supply chains. 

Watch our short video at https://video.wixstatic.com/vi... for an overview of how our we are working with the global trade ecosystem to co-create and drive adoption of the solution.

While digital trade will help businesses of all sizes, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) stand to gain the lion’s share of benefits. SMEs account for the majority of jobs—over 90 percent in some countries—and are a major source of women’s employment in leadership roles. And yet, SMEs are underrepresented in exports and in global supply chains, largely due to information asymmetries or complexity of cross-border processes. Trade digitalization helps. A globally harmonised, digitised trade environment, with its transparent rules and standards and equitable access, levels the playing field so SMEs can compete.

Lack of financial access is the other big barrier stymying SME growth. The World Bank estimates that 40 percent of SMEs in developing countries have unmet financing needs totalling $5.2 trillion. Here, DSI offers hope at reducing the financing cost to serve by simplifying and standardizing the dataset derived from digitalizing key trade processes, which could address a significant portion of a bank’s data needs for a typical trade finance transaction. Paired with the use of digital identity, use of this dataset could alleviate the need for a bank to mount its own effort to ascertain this same information, thereby lowering the cost of financing.

In other words, digital trade turns out to hit the sweet spot of growth strategies today: loved by big business for its ability to increase speed, lower cost, and make trade easier, while also empowering small business by solving two big conundrums, namely access and finance. As such, it addresses both the wealth and gender gaps, while giving companies resources and capabilities crucial to climate action.

The DSI team are dedicated, focused and experienced professionals from the worlds of trade and supply chains, law and policy, finance, and standards development.  We convene and engage with the public and private sectors formally through the Legal Reform Advisory Board (LRAB) and the Industry Advisory Board (IAB).  In the design and delivery of every aspect of our solution, we actively solicit inputs from those who have the most relevant expertise and drive collaboration in the public interest. We believe in open dialogue and inclusivity, publicly sharing our processes and considerations. Our commitment is to make information and resources easily available, fostering an environment where everyone can engage and contribute. Here are the team members:

- Pamela Mar, Managing Director: Pamela was born in New York and went to university in the USA, but has spent the majority of her life abroad, working closely with both SMEs and leading global enterprises in solving major global issues. Prior to joining the DSI, Pamela was Executive Vice President for Supply Chain Futures, and then EVP for Knowledge and Applications for the Fung Group, a Hong Kong based multinational supply chain manager where she was also the first Group head of Sustainability. She was named one of Asia’s ten A-list sustainability leaders in 2019, and is a recognised industry leader in this area. Prior to moving to Hong Kong, Pamela was based in Shenzhen, China, as a Director of Global Finance for TCL Multimedia Technology, the first major Chinese company to go global by buying a major foreign brand. Prior to TCL, Pamela ran Greater China for the World Economic Forum, based in Geneva for five years.  

- Hannah Nguyen, Director of Digital Ecosystems: With 15 years’ experience in global trade and supply chain, Hannah Nguyen is a passionate champion for digitalisation, and connecting disparate parts of, its ecosystem. Her prior experience includes leading business development for a global commodity logistics business; promoting Singapore as the premier regional hub for the trading of commodities; and conducting market intelligence to advise corporates interested in competing and growing their businesses in Asia Pacific. Her practical experience in physical supply chains and paper-based processes makes her well-positioned to engage industry stakeholders, standards development organizations, solution providers, governments, and inter-government organizations to remove paper from the ecosystem. 

- Tianmi Stilphen, Lead for Regulatory Affairs and Legal Reform: As a licensed lawyer in the United States, before embarking on her journey with ICC DSI, Tianmi demonstrated her commitment to the legal field as a practicing attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice. Her time there not only enriched her legal proficiency but also allowed her to engage with complex legal challenges on a global scale. Tianmi's background also includes contributions as a regulatory researcher in the House of Representatives of the U.S. Congress. During her session, she helped to draft a House bill focused on modernising rule-making practices and procedures. Her legislative portfolio showcased her commitment to fostering progressive change within the legal and regulatory landscape.   

We have launched a suite of tools and resources to benefit a wide array of stakeholders from public and private sectors, and are looking to grow our reach and impact in order to realise the DSI mission of establishing a globally harmonized, digitalized global trading environment by 2026:

- The Standards Toolkit for Cross-Border Paperless Trade, jointly published with the World Trade Organization, provides an overview of standards currently in use  in trade and related processes. This is available in 8 global languages: https://iccwbo.org/news-public...

-  The Key Trade Documents and Data Elements (KTDDE) digital standards analysis and recommendations provides an integrated framework for digitalising the entire supply chain, coupled with an interactive web tool, serving both educational purposes and as a facilitator for applications geared towards advancing supply chain digitalisation: https://www.dsi.iccwbo.org/_fi...

- The ‘Declaration of the electronic Bill of Lading’ campaign to secure the support of various stakeholders including Shippers, Corporates, Solution Providers, Banks and Freight Forwarders towards a universal electronic bill of lading (eBL), under the umbrella the FIT Alliance, comprising DCSA, BIMCO, FIATA, ICC, and SWIFT: https://www.fit-alliance.org/

- A platform for sharing lessons learned and propelling nations forward in a nation’s alignment journey with the Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR) drafted by UNCITRAL. From conceptualisation and consultation to comprehensive capacity building, DSI serves as a comprehensive hub, providing an array of invaluable resources, including: 

• a detailed Roadmap 
• a Tracker that monitors global alignment progress 
• a repository of frequently encountered questions 

- The Global Trade Modernization Index (GTMI) to assess economies’ readiness for digital trade across both the public and private sectors, as well as labor force capability. The Index aims to improve awareness among policymakers, investors, and businesses about what it takes to create advantage through digital trade and to promote its rapid and equitable adoption: https://www.dsi.iccwbo.org/_fi...

- A comprehensive self-paced online course - Certificate in Digital Trade Strategy – which offers a holistic journey through the intricacies of digitising supply chain processes while leveraging global expertise from over 20 industry champions, legal experts, innovators, and public policy officials. Till date, the course has benefited over 350 participants from over 64 countries: https://icc.academy/digital-tr...

All of the above tools and resources are publicly available and actively promoted through the ICC Global network which serves more than 45 million companies in over 170 countries. 

We are looking to partner with like-minded stakeholders from public sector to progress regulatory and institutional reform, and mobilise the private sector on adoption, implementation and capacity building for digital trade at scale. We hope to:

- Leverage Solve's virtual support program to level up the team's capacity to scale the initiative

- Join Solve's powerful network of impact-minded leaders to bring digital trade closer to many more underserved communities

- Gain exposure in the media and at conferences to keep the pressure on governments to carry out enabling legal reforms to support digital trade

- Gain access to additional funding from donors and organizations to support the roll-out of capacity building programs for less developed economies and SMEs. 

Instead of prescribing one way, one platform or one technology that the entire global supply chain and trade ecosystem must use to digitalize trade, the DSI is spearheading the establishment of a globally harmonised digital trade environment.  We recognize that many pieces of the puzzle already exist, including many standards for digital documents and data elements as well as enabling laws and regulations which, once aligned in a globally cohesive and interoperable way, could help economies and communities digitalize their trade processes more easily. Therefore, we focus on driving transparency and accessibility of trade standards currently in use, promoting harmonisation and alignment where multiple standards may already exist and offering support to countries aiming to align with the MLETR framework. At the same time, we seed digital trade adoption in key sectors and support pilot projects, champion best practices and nurture a learning community of digital trade practitioners and advocates.  By convening and steering a global collaborative effort between standards organizations, intergovernmental bodies and regulators, and business and industry, we are creating a single framework that could end the era of fragmentation for digital trade.

To achieve the goal of having 80-90% of world trade by volume aligned with MLETR or committed to do so by 2026, we focus on engaging key countries within major trade groups, build out our advocacy framework and engagement toolkits alongside developing and delivering a highly scalable MLETR capacity building model through a combination of online programs and in-person workshop for policymakers.

To create an integrated vision for digitalising the supply chain with a clear path to interoperability and data sharing, we focus on creating an integrated end-to-end framework to digitalize key harmonized documents and drive partnerships with industry associations to drive adoption rate up to 50% in selected export intensive sectors.   

At the same time, we are establishing an industry-wide standard for assessing reliability and interoperability for digital supply chain participants as a building block for digital trust at scale. This will enable the use of automated data transfer and sharing, making processes and standards for the verification, authentication and protection of such data  easily accessible to all supply chain participants.

Our goal is to have 80-90% of world trade by volume aligned with the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Records (MLETR) or committed to do so by 2026 and a 50% adoption rate of key digital trade standards and trusted technology principles. Progress will be measured through a combination of tools including the MLETR Trackers, the Global Trade Modernization Index (GTMI) and industry- or sector-specific surveys and studies.  

The corollary to our vision of digitalising trade – represented by key trade documents and their data elements – by the use of automated data transfer and sharing, is that the processes and standards for the verification, authentication and protection of such data become of paramount importance.  While individual supply chains may transact digitally on a single platform according to their own standards, our interest is in technology principles that would facilitate trade digitalisation at scale.   

DSI outlined the “Trust supply chain” in its Trust in Trade paper, to complement existing physical, financial and information supply chains and simultaneously improve speed, efficiency, and transparency. The trust supply chain is built around Zero Trust Architecture (backed by cryptographically produced verifiability), digital ID for all parties along the supply chain and interoperability for all data (implying alignment with global standards in all instances). 

We are embedding these technology principles into an industry-wide standard for assessing reliability and interoperability for digital supply chain participants as a building block for digital trust at scale. This will enable the use of automated data transfer and sharing, making processes and standards for the verification, authentication and protection of such data  easily accessible to all supply chain participants.

On this basis, it will be progressively easier for supply chain participants to harness the full power of Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning, Big Data, Blockchain, the Internet of Things, Software and Mobile Applications and other emerging technologies.

4 Full time staff, 2 interns.

The ICC Digital Standards Initiative started operations in September 2020. 

Our team at the ICC is deeply committed to fostering a culture that embraces the principles enshrined in the DE&I Statement above. Our team comprises four female employees with diverse nationalities spanning Asia to North America and two interns based in Europe. All of the team member representing various nationalities, from Asia to America. Each member brings a unique background and expertise, spanning industries from legal to supply chain sustainability. This diverse composition also reflects our commitment to fostering an inclusive environment where individuals from different backgrounds can thrive and collectively contribute to our mission. Moreover, this diversity enriches our perspectives, fosters innovation, and reflects our belief in the value of different backgrounds and experiences. 

At ICC, we are dedicated to leveraging diversity to enhance our services and operations while contributing to broader societal advancement. Our initiatives focus on promoting gender diversity, LGBTQIA+ inclusion, and accessibility for people with disabilities.  Specifically, through the broader initiatives like World Business Women (WBW), ICC actively promotes gender diversity in leadership positions and commits to representing gender diversity in panel discussions at conferences. Our engagement extends to supporting global efforts such as the United Nations’ Women’s Empowerment Principles and advocating for women’s empowerment within forums like the B20.

Additionally, we are committed to supporting the LGBTQIA community through our World Business Pride initiative, which provides an inclusive, fair, and safe workplace for members of the LGBTQIA community and allies. Through the World Business Pride Pledge, we have outlined commitments to foster an inclusive environment, raise awareness, and provide a safe space for all employees to bring their whole, authentic selves to work.

Furthermore, our commitment to diversity extends to ensuring inclusion for people with disabilities. In 2021, we established the ICC Disability Task Force, the first such effort by an arbitral institution to make dispute resolution more inclusive for people with disabilities. By providing resources such as the "ICC Guide on Disability Inclusion in International Arbitration and ADR," we are working to remove barriers and create more accessible pathways for participation.

As part of the broader chambers of commerce network, we recognize the pivotal role that chambers play in promoting diversity and inclusion as forces for social and economic good. Through our involvement with the ICC World Chambers Federation, we leverage the influence and connectivity of the chamber network to improve the economic empowerment of women and other underrepresented groups in the global workforce.

In conclusion, diversity, equity, and inclusion are not just ideals we strive for at ICC DSI but fundamental principles that guide our actions and decisions every day.

We engage the public sector to progress regulatory and institutional reform, and mobilise the private sector on standards harmonisation, adoption, and capacity building. 

Through our partnerships with multilateral development banks, international organizations, regional economic groupings and public sector bodies, we provide sponsored training and capacity-building resources to policy makers and public agencies who are in charge of spearheading the necessary legal and policy reform to support digital trade. These efforts are crucial to equip public sector participants with the foundational knowledge needed to effectively navigate and drive the transformative changes brought by digital trade policies in their countries and regions.

In partnership with ICC Academy, we offer an online, self-paced learning programme with curated contents from more than 20 industry champions, legal experts, innovators & public policy officials. The objective of this course is to provide learners with a deep, macro level understanding of the various components required to digitise trade and supply chain processes at scale, and to give them the authority needed to catalyze necessary transformations in policy and industries. Successful completion of the online programme will lead to the award of the internationally recognized Certificate for Digital Trade Strategy (CDTS). Till date, the programme has benefited more than 350 participants from over 64 countries.

The Digital Standards Initiative (DSI) is a global initiative based in Singapore, backed by an international Governance Board comprising leaders from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Enterprise Singapore, the Asian Development Bank, the World Trade Organisation and the World Customs Organisation. The DSI benefits from seed funding from our Founding partners including the Asian Development Bank and the Government of Singapore and is evolving towards a diversified and sustainable self-funding model through a combination of grants, project-based funding and educational revenues.