International collaboration spearheaded by IOTA presents a blockchain-based trade initiative: "Our aim is to simplify and reduce costs for nations engaging in cross-border trade."
Redesigned TWIN Foundation Initiative:
Embracing Change in Global Trade Systems
The IOTA Foundation, in partnership with heavyweight international organizations, has launched the TWIN Foundation. This innovative initiative aims to revolutionize global trade, making it greener, more transparent, and inclusive via decentralized infrastructure powered by IOTA's technology.
The TWIN Foundation collaboration encompasses the World Economic Forum, Ton Blair Institute for Global Change, TradeMark Africa, Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, and Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade. Together, they'll oversee the Trade Worldwide Information Network (TWIN), an open-source infrastructure built on IOTA's distributed ledger technology (DLT).
Announced at the AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum in Lusaka, Zambia, TWIN represents a shift away from recently rising protectionist trade policies, such as U.S. tariffs and economic warfare strategies under U.S. President Donald Trump. Instead, TWIN aims to unite global supply chains rather than fragment them.
"We wager on a future where IOTA serves as a decentralized, neutral, open, and immutable digital infrastructure, connecting nations and people worldwide," Dominik Schiener, Co-Founder, and Chairman of the IOTA Foundation, told our website during an interview.
TWIN tackles longstanding inefficiencies within international trade, offering governments efficient border control and the private sector improved access to new efficiencies and digital services. It enables real-time, verifiable data exchange globally and across sectors, utilizing DLT tools such as decentralized identifiers, digital product passports, and self-sovereign identity frameworks.
Connecting the World with IOTA: Not Just Tech, but Partnerships
Already powering numerous real-world deployments worldwide, TWIN is demonstrating the potential of digital transparency to reduce disruptions, ensure product quality, and meet ESG standards. Notable examples include:
- The United Kingdom's Cabinet Office pilot for EU poultry imports.
- The blockchain-enabled monitoring hub, Virtual Watch Tower.
- Fresh produce tracking between Kenya and the Netherlands via the RESULD project.
Starting with Kenya, the vision is to bring at least dozens of countries on board over the coming years and turn TWIN into a blueprint for future international trade. As the public rollout commences, IOTA and its partners envision a future where TWIN functions not only as an upgrade to outdated systems but as the foundation of the international trade's future.
"We're after one simple goal: to make international trade easier and cheaper," Schiener added. "Our involvement isn't tied to any political agenda, but we're pushing a practical solution."
As the project evolves, so does IOTA. Just this week, it was upgraded to the Rebased protocol, ensuring a robust and secure environment for the vast trade data to be managed.
Below, we share our interview with Dominik Schiener, Co-Founder of IOTA and Chairman of the IOTA Foundation.
our website: Given the political nature of the mission, what compels the IOTA Foundation to align itself with such a mission, ensuring its role remains as a neutral provider of blockchain infrastructure instead of pushing a specific global policy agenda?
Dominik Schiener: The primary purpose of Blockchain is to eliminate barriers and reduce friction - spurring growth and global access. It's our dream to build a decentralized, neutral, open, and immutable digital infrastructure connecting the world. Our goal is to make trade easier and more affordable for everyone.
By eliminating inefficiencies and funding gaps in trade finance, we're creating a more streamlined and prosperous global economy. Thus, TWIN is not political in nature but an economic solution that benefits countries worldwide.
our website: With heavyweight institutions like the WEF and government-linked organizations onboard, TWIN may be perceived as adopting a "globalist" establishment. Does collaboration with these prestigious institutions compromise IOTA's independence or blockchain technology's open ethos?
Dominik Schiener: Rest assured, IOTA remains independent and impartial. It's a decentralized network and not controlled by any entity. Since IOTA's inception, our mission has been to bring governments, NGOs, and enterprises into the world of decentralized Blockchain networks.
We consider it our mission to bring the real world into Web3, thereby achieving widespread adoption and adding new users, use cases, and assets to the blockchain ecosystem.
our website: TWIN plans to tokenize trade documents as NFTs and secure them using digital identity verification. Can you explain who governs this digital identity system and establish safeguards to guarantee that this setup enhances data sovereignty instead of creating new control or surveillance points?
Dominik Schiener: The system is fully open-source and adheres to privacy regulations. In the TWIN network, parties share data only if they provide explicit consent. This ensures GDPR compliance and self-sovereignty. We're using the full power of open, permissionless blockchains, self-sovereign identities, and verifiable credentials to offer an open, decentralized, and secure environment for traders to share data across borders.
our website: Following concerns about decentralization in the past (like the dependency on Coordinator nodes for network security), how are decentralization and security issues addressed in the IOTA network itself as the critical trade infrastructure depends on it? If any form of centralized special oversight is still required or the system can be halted in an emergency, does this undercut trust in the supposedly decentralized trade platform?
Dominik Schiener: The recent upgrade to the Rebased protocol has made IOTA a truly decentralized and production-ready network, securing its role in global trade. The network's ongoing improvements should help build trust in TWIN as a trustworthy, decentralized trade platform.
[1] https://www.iotatokens.com/[2] https://alchemy.com/blog/understanding-blockchain-governance/[4] https://medium.com/matter-labs/decentralized-interoperability-and-the-value-of-composability-in-ethereum-ecosystem-4f5bdd9b765a
- The TWIN Foundation, powered by IOTA's technology, seeks to create a decentralized infrastructure that serves as a counterbalance to protectionist trade policies, such as US tariffs.
- Dominik Schiener, Co-Founder of IOTA, envisions TWIN as a neutral, open, and immutable digital ledger, connecting nations and people worldwide.
- TWIN aims to address inefficiencies within international trade, offering governments efficient border control and private sector access to new digital services.
- IOTA's technology is already powering real-world deployments, demonstrating the potential of digital transparency to reduce disruptions, ensure product quality, and meet ESG standards.
- TWIN plans to tokenize trade documents as NFTs and secure them using digital identity verification, ensuring GDPR compliance and self-sovereignty.
- IOTA has upgraded to the Rebased protocol to ensure a robust and secure environment for managing vast trade data.
- TWIN, starting with Kenya, intends to bring at least dozens of countries on board over the coming years, making international trade easier and cheaper.
- collaboration with prestigious institutions like the WEF and government-linked organizations does not compromise IOTA's independence, as it remains a decentralized network.
- In the TWIN network, parties share data only if they provide explicit consent, establishing safeguards to guarantee that this setup enhances data sovereignty instead of creating new control or surveillance points.
