--- title: "All Our Stuff Is Gonna Be Traded on the Blockchain, Finance Companies Say" description: "A consortium of prominent energy and financial institutions say they'll soon start trading commodities on a new blockchain platform called Komgo." date: "2018-09-19" modified: "2018-09-19" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/trade-commodities-blockchain" categories: - "Blockchain" - "Finance" - "Future Society" tags: - "blockchain" - "citigroup" - "commodities trading" - "komgo" - "shell" - "the digest" --- # All Our Stuff Is Gonna Be Traded on the Blockchain, Finance Companies Say ![A consortium of prominent energy and financial institutions say they'll soon start trading commodities on a new blockchain platform called Komgo.]() *\Image: Victor Tangermann\* ## PAPERCRAFT The companies that trade commodities like oil and wheat make a lot of money. But they also do a lot of paperwork. They have to send [invoices, contracts, and letters of credit]() around the world, and it's pretty tedious and time-consuming. Now, a consortium of prominent energy and financial institutions including Royal Dutch Shell and Citigroup plans to start trading commodities on a new blockchain platform called Komgo. “Blockchain technology will answer the needs of key participants in commodity trading by improving efficiency and security,” said Souleima Baddi, the chief executive of the startup, in an interview [with the *Financial Times*](). ## ETHEREAL The new platform will run on the Ethereum network, a distributed computing platform that uses a blockchain to host contracts. Similar organizations have tried trading commodities on the blockchain in the past few years, [according to *Reuters*](), but Komgo stands out because of its prominent launch partners and because any firm will be allowed to use it. If all goes according to plan, *Reuters* reports, the system will become available for energy trading in November. Next year it will expand to agriculture and metals. ## BLOCKHEADS Not every major player has bought in. [*Bloomberg* points out]() that the top three independent oil traders — Vitol Group, Glencore Plc and Trafigura Group — are "notably absent" from the Komgo founders. But if Komgo is a success, it could be a proof of concept for any industry that want to use a distributed ledger to make complex contracts and paperwork easier. **READ MORE:** [Energy traders and banks back new blockchain platforms]() \[*Financial Times*\] ***More on blockchain: [There’s Now A Religion Based On the Blockchain. Yes, Really.]()*** ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()