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Blockchain technology and trust relationships in trade finance

Author

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  • Kowalski, Michał
  • Lee, Zach W.Y.
  • Chan, Tommy K.H.

Abstract

Blockchain technology has been advocated as a possible solution to enduring trust issues among trading partners in trade finance. We conducted in-depth interviews with industry experts to examine how blockchain technology influences the trust relationships among trading partners. Our results show that the technology enhances trust relationships by (1) improving the security of transactions and data exchanges, (2) facilitating the expression of benevolence, (3) enhancing the efficiency and the quality of communication, and (4) increasing the predictability of trading partners. The paper concludes with implications for both research and practice.

Suggested Citation

  • Kowalski, Michał & Lee, Zach W.Y. & Chan, Tommy K.H., 2021. "Blockchain technology and trust relationships in trade finance," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:166:y:2021:i:c:s0040162521000731
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2021.120641
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    3. Toorajipour, Reza & Oghazi, Pejvak & Sohrabpour, Vahid & Patel, Pankaj C. & Mostaghel, Rana, 2022. "Block by block: A blockchain-based peer-to-peer business transaction for international trade," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
    4. Patel, Ritesh & Migliavacca, Milena & Oriani, Marco E., 2022. "Blockchain in banking and finance: A bibliometric review," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    5. Julio Pombo-Romero & Oliver Rúas-Barrosa, 2022. "A Blockchain-Based Financial Instrument for the Decarbonization of Irrigated Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-22, July.
    6. Xue Ding & Mengling Qin & Linsen Yin & Dayong Lv & Yao Bai, 2023. "Research on FinTech Talent Evaluation Index System and Recruitment Strategy: Evidence From Shanghai in China," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, November.
    7. Piñeiro-Chousa, Juan & Šević, Aleksandar & González-López, Isaac, 2023. "Impact of social metrics in decentralized finance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    8. Jalan, Akanksha & Matkovskyy, Roman & Urquhart, Andrew & Yarovaya, Larisa, 2023. "The role of interpersonal trust in cryptocurrency adoption," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    9. Jaehun Joo & Yuming Han, 2021. "An Evidence of Distributed Trust in Blockchain-Based Sustainable Food Supply Chain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-15, October.
    10. Shatha Alharbi & Afraa Attiah & Daniyal Alghazzawi, 2022. "Integrating Blockchain with Artificial Intelligence to Secure IoT Networks: Future Trends," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-27, November.
    11. Stefan Craß & Alexander Eisl & Nedim Begic & Romana Polt, 2022. "Die Rolle moderner Technologien, insbesondere Blockchain, in der Lieferkettenverantwortung," FIW Research Reports series VIII-006, FIW.
    12. Dong, Ciwei & Chen, Chenyi & Shi, Xiutian & Ng, Chi To, 2021. "Operations strategy for supply chain finance with asset-backed securitization: Centralization and blockchain adoption," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    13. Rico-Peña, Juan Jesús & Arguedas-Sanz, Raquel & López-Martin, Carmen, 2023. "Models used to characterise blockchain features. A systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    14. Rijswijk, Kelly & de Vries, Jasper R. & Klerkx, Laurens & Turner, James A., 2023. "The enabling and constraining connections between trust and digitalisation in incumbent value chains," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 186(PA).
    15. Elarbi Badidi, 2022. "Edge AI and Blockchain for Smart Sustainable Cities: Promise and Potential," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-30, June.

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