The draft standard for data exchange by the Global Shipping Business Network (GSBN) has successfully passed the Committee Stage review and reached the fifth level—the Enquiry level—as a Draft International Standard (DIS).
ISO5909 will move on to the sixth stage, where the Final Draft International Standard will be developed based on comments from the fifth stage, eventually resulting in the standard’s promulgation.
In 2022, ISO5909 was voted on and accepted by ISO/TC154 of the International Organization for Standardization.
This standard was created cooperatively by professionals from China and overseas, including those from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and ISO/TC154 JWG9 of the International Organization for Standardization.
A team of five COSCO SHIPPING Lines employees worked on the project, with two recommended as co-leaders to oversee the standard’s development.
ISO5909 addresses the difficulty of replacing paper-based bills of lading, which serve as property rights certificates, with electronic counterparts. It standardises the digital circulation process and data semantics, bridging a substantial gap in international standards for the circulation of electronic bills of lading (eBLs) as property rights certificates, as well as the use of blockchain technology.
The standard provides a systematic framework and premise for issuing, circulating, and returning eBLs for transportation using blockchain-based systems, supporting the use of blockchain-based eBLs and creating a secure digital platform for paperless processes and facilitating international trade.
According to COSCO SHIPPING, over 350,000 eBLs have been created and distributed via the GSBN blockchain network.
In July, Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) and WaveBL announced a new collaboration focused on the digital transformation of eBLs and related trade documents.
