The Volvo Group has been quietly exploring the benefits of decentralized ledgers.
Ivan Branco, who leads information management, AI, and analytics for the Volvo Group’s logistics operations in Belgium, recently revealed that the car giant is currently in the process of developing a proprietary cryptocurrency designed for supplier transactions.
The role of blockchain
For Volvo, the interest in blockchain is about solving tangible supply chain inefficiencies.
Branco has noted that the company approaches these technologies from a perspective of business necessity. It is no longer about tech-first experimentation. "The way I see blockchain is when I look at all the technologies that we use within our architecture, we first focus on the business value. We focus on a specific business need, business requirements, really understanding, okay, how can we help the business through these solutions," Branco stated in a recent interview.
He argues that the biggest barrier to adoption is a "false stigma" that links blockchain exclusively to cryptocurrency speculation. Volvo aims to move from a "silo-minded approach" to a "collaborative approach" where blockchain supports security and stability in managing complex information.
The proprietary cryptocurrency experiment
As mentioned above, the most notable revelation is the investigation into a proprietary digital currency.
"We've done explorations also with certain transport suppliers to see if we could create, let's say, an enclosed environment using blockchain for the transactions in between material supplier, transport supplier, and ourselves with a proprietary cryptocurrency that we created for that specific purpose for that investigation or exploration to try and remove that complexity," Branco explained.
The goal was to create a unified system where the currency served as a facilitator. "You would use a single one, which would be the cryptocurrency, to facilitate the exchanges between suppliers and Volvo, and also you would have the ledgers where all of the information regarding the transportation orders would be kept. So that's an exploration that we have done because we truly believe that it can simplify the way in which we exchange information," Branco explained.