Standard Chartered invests in Singapore-based blockchain network Contour

Multinational banking and financial services firm Standard Chartered announced that it has invested an undisclosed amount into blockchain-based open industry platform Contour.

Photo credit: Serhii Yaremenko

Formerly known as Voltron, blockchain trade finance project Contour has recently gone into full commercialization after conducting pilots in 14 countries. It plans to initially focus on digitally creating, exchanging, approving, and issuing letters of credit, according to a statement.

Letters of credit serve as a guarantee for payments between two entities who want to trade goods or services with each other. They are issued between banks, typically across country borders.

Having done two live pilots with unnamed clients in the petrochemicals industry, Standard Chartered said that Contour helped improve transparency and cost efficiencies, as well as reduce settlement risks across the supply chain.

In the next phase of its development, Contour looks to further expand its ecosystem to include more banks, tech providers, and other established trade finance networks. To that end, Standard Chartered will be injecting its smart guarantee capabilities to digitize the bank guarantees process.

Contour, which was established in Singapore, is built on blockchain company R3’s Corda platform and retains the support and expertise of the firm. It is helmed by Carl Wegner, a trade finance veteran that helped build R3’s presence across Asia.

Standard Chartered is part of the consortium of leading trade finance banks and investors that have founded Contour. The other entities in the group include Bangkok Bank, BNP Paribas, CTBC Venture Capital, HSBC Investment Bank, ING Bank, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken, Bain & Company, CryptoBLK, and R3.