7 Blockchain Case Studies from Different Industries in 2024

ByPaul Christiano Last Update on

Hey there! Blockchain is an exciting technology that‘s transforming a wide range of industries. Companies around the world are using blockchain to enhance data sharing, speed up operations, reduce costs, and more.

According to Statista, global investment in blockchain solutions is skyrocketing – from $5.6 billion in 2022 to an expected $163 billion by 2028. That‘s a compound annual growth rate of almost 70%!

With blockchain going mainstream, you have a huge opportunity to gain a competitive edge for your business. But where exactly should you focus your blockchain investments?

Real-world case studies can provide invaluable insights into the types of blockchain solutions that deliver proven value.

In this guide, we‘ll explore seven blockchain case studies from industries like supply chain, insurance, energy, and more. For each example, we‘ll look at:

  • The key business challenge
  • How blockchain provided a solution
  • The measurable impact for the company

Let‘s dive in!

Blockchain for Procurement & Supplier Management

Procurement and supplier management processes come with major pain points.

According to a Deloitte survey, over 40% of procurement leaders say their top challenge is long cycle times to onboard suppliers. Verifying supplier credentials is manual and labor-intensive.

Blockchain is streamlining these processes by enabling secure data sharing between companies and their suppliers. Let‘s look at two examples.

1. Trust Your Supplier: Faster Onboarding & Compliance

Onboarding new suppliers often takes months and costs thousands in third-party verification fees. Trust Your Supplier saw an opportunity to fix this through blockchain.

They partnered with IBM to build an open blockchain platform for supplier data. Once credentials are verified by Dun & Bradstreet, EcoVadis, and others, suppliers get a digital "passport" on the blockchain.

  • This immediately cuts onboarding time by over 70% according to one chemical company.
  • Supplier data verification costs were reduced by 50% in pilots.
  • Compliance improves as certificates like ISO can be checked in real-time.

Walter Charles, Procurement Director at Solvay, implemented the platform and said:

"We reduced the costs of qualifying suppliers by 50%. The digital passport also allows us to monitor qualifications continuously, instead of just at onboarding."

As Charles highlights, blockchain delivers huge time and cost savings while also boosting supply chain compliance and transparency.

2. TradeLens: Streamlining Global Trade

Complexities in global trade processes lead to high costs, fraud risk, and reduced trust.

TradeLens, built on IBM Blockchain by Maersk and other shipping leaders, improves information flow between exporters, freight forwarders, ocean carriers, ports and customs offices.

Integrating with legacy systems, TradeLens provides end-to-end shipment visibility by digitizing paperwork and enabling real-time tracking.

Just how impactful is this? According to Maersk:

  • TradeLens contains over 20 million shipping events and documents.
  • Transactions that took days or weeks now take minutes on the platform.
  • Customs clearance time at ports can be cut by 60% using TradeLens.

This demonstrates blockchain‘s immense potential to accelerate and bring trust to global B2B trade.

Blockchain for Supply Chain Traceability

Supply chains are complex, with many players needing to coordinate and share data as products change hands.

Blockchain establishes a transparent, shared record of supply chain transactions that all parties can trust. This leads to higher efficiency, lower costs, and improved regulatory compliance across the ecosystem.

Let‘s explore two examples of supply chain blockchains in action.

3. Walmart: Better Food Traceability

During an outbreak, tracing a food product back to the source using paper records can take weeks. This delays critical recalls.

Walmart partnered with IBM to build a blockchain-based food traceability system following an E.coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce.

The blockchain tracks produce from farm to store, capturing key data like farm origin, batch numbers, expiration dates, shipping info, and more.

Walmart now has a real-time view of food origins and movements across its network. This enables targeted, faster recalls – reducing risk and waste.

As Frank Yiannas, VP of Food Safety at Walmart, stated:

"Blockchain can reduce the time to trace food from days to seconds. Imagine reducing costly recalls as we enhance food transparency."

4. Boehringer Ingelheim: Combating Pharma Counterfeits

The pharma industry loses $200 billion annually to counterfeit drugs that put patient lives at risk globally.

Boehringer Ingelheim explored blockchain to track drugs across the supply chain and detect tampering. Their proof of concept used IoT sensors to monitor temperature and location in real-time as drugs moved through the supply chain.

Counterfeit attempts changed the IoT readings, enabling detection. The data was logged immutably on a blockchain, providing transparency to business partners.

Boehringer Ingelheim‘s Serge Gasser noted:

"The blockchain POC gave us deeper supply chain insights. We‘re now exploring blockchain to improve patient safety by preventing distribution of fake drugs."

Blockchain for Insurance

Insurance processes like customer onboarding and claims handling are prime targets for blockchain disruption. Two examples showcase the potential here.

5. AXA Insurance: Streamlined Customer Onboarding

Insurers spend millions annually verifying customer identity documents. AXA built a blockchain solution to optimize this crucial first step.

Integrating with public records, AXA‘s blockchain platform instantly validates customer IDs. Manual review is only needed for exceptions, improving onboarding speed.

According to AXA:

  • Onboarding time was reduced from 4 weeks to just 10 minutes.
  • Costs declined by up to 70% compared to traditional processes.

By simplifying identity checks, AXA provides a better customer experience while freeing resources to focus on more complex risks.

6. Etherisc: Automating Flight Insurance Claims

Insurtech Etherisc developed a flight delay insurance product with an automated claims system underpinned by blockchain.

IoT data feeds track flight status in real-time. When a delay over a set length occurs, their smart contract platform instantly pays eligible claims to customer wallets.

Etherisc co-founder Stephan Karpischek says:

"By using blockchain to automate flight delay insurance claims, we can reduce resolution time from weeks to minutes while lowering costs."

Automation delivers huge benefits for insurers and customers. Payments in crypto directly to customer wallets also opens new options.

Blockchain for Sustainability

Sustainability is a priority across industries, but measuring progress can be challenging. Two examples show how blockchain can assist.

7. BHP: Tracking Mine Site Carbon Emissions

Mining giant BHP uses blockchain to record, track, and verify carbon emissions at its sites.

Sensors first collect emissions data, then algorithms determine offsets required. This data is logged on a private Ethereum blockchain, providing transparency.

According to BHP:

  • Blockchain delivers a single source of emissions truth across their global sites.
  • Reporting time has been cut from weeks to minutes.
  • Analysis that used to take months can now be done in seconds.

BHP‘s climate strategist, Emma Bostian, commented:

"Blockchain gives us far greater confidence in our sustainability insights to make progress against our carbon targets."

8. Joined Hands: Empowering Recyclers in Thailand

Joined Hands is a non-profit supporting vulnerable waste pickers in Thailand. They built a blockchain tool to track recyclable waste and payments.

Recyclers scan plastic, glass and aluminum they collect into the system via app. This captures waste volumes, types, and pick-up location. Payments to pickers are automatically calculated and distributed as digital vouchers.

Blockchain brings fair compensation and visibility while cutting out exploitative middlemen. According to Joined Hands:

  • Pickers get full payments for what they collect by removing rent-seeking parties.
  • Incomes for some pickers have increased by 70% since using the blockchain system.

The Future Is Bright for Blockchain

These diverse examples provide tangible evidence of blockchain‘s benefits across procurement, supply chains, insurance, sustainability, and more.

Industry leaders are moving blockchain from proof of concept to full-scale implementation. Over 60% of firms expect blockchain to be integrated into their systems by 2023 according to Deloitte.

The time for blockchain investment is now. With careful planning, blockchain can help your business cut costs, improve agility, and deliver new value.

When assessing potential use cases, identify key pain points blockchain can address. Prioritize solutions that enhance transparency, exchange speed, compliance, or analytics.

Stay ahead of disruption. Choose blockchain projects strategically and reap the rewards!

To discuss how blockchain could transform your business, please get in touch. Our team of experts is happy to provide advice and technology recommendations tailored to your needs.

I am Paul Christiano, a fervent explorer at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and their broader implications for society. Renowned as a leading figure in AI safety research, my passion lies in ensuring that the exponential powers of AI are harnessed for the greater good. Throughout my career, I've grappled with the challenges of aligning machine learning systems with human ethics and values. My work is driven by a belief that as AI becomes an even more integral part of our world, it's imperative to build systems that are transparent, trustworthy, and beneficial. I'm honored to be a part of the global effort to guide AI towards a future that prioritizes safety and the betterment of humanity.

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