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Enigio’s trace:original solution has become the first digital trade document system to be recognised as “reliable” under an initiative spearheaded by two international organisations. 

Most regulatory frameworks for issuing and transferring electronic trade documents require the use of a “reliable system” to do so, including the UN’s model law and the domestic equivalent in the UK. 

However, most do not define what that means in practice. 

In response, the International Chamber of Commerce’s Digital Standards Initiative (ICC DSI) and Canada’s Digital Governance Council launched a tool last month that allows industry participants to submit a self assessment of their systems, which is then reviewed by the two organisations. 

On November 18, the duo issued a verification statement stating that Enigio had provided “sufficient evidence” indicating that trace:original aligns with general reliability standards set out in the UN model law. 

The statement says Enigio’s solution – which allows users to create and transfer digital title documents – has sufficient operational and security controls in place, and that technical procedures used to create, maintain and transfer electronic trade documents are compliant with existing technological standards. 

It is signed by Digital Governance Council chief executive Keith Jansa and ICC DSI managing director Pamela Mar. 

Patrik Zekkar, chief executive of Enigio, says the company is “thrilled” to have contributed to shaping the model law reliability framework, hailing it as “a true example of how collaboration drives progress in the industry”. 

“But the real milestone is the launch of the ICC DSI and Digital Governance Council reliability assessment itself,” he tells GTR.  

“Together with the [model law] reliable framework, it answers a crucial need in the industry: offering a clear, trusted path for what is needed to adopt and scale digital trade. It helps show how to turn dialogue on electronic trade into action.” 

Currently, the assessment tool has not received external accreditation, and the statement notes the approval of Enigio’s solution is “an interim acknowledgement only”. 

However, the organisations said last month they hope the tool will eventually become a credential underpinned by a certification process with third-party validation. 

Industry insiders say determining which platforms are considered reliable is a crucial step towards digitalising trade, not least because it will encourage interoperability between systems that have cleared that hurdle. 

Although the UN and UK laws avoided taking a prescriptive approach to reliability standards, France’s implementation of trade digitalisation reforms is expected to include a decree setting out criteria that platforms will have to meet.