Blockchain enabled trade finance platform Contour partners with MineHub

MineHub and Contour have partnered to integrate their digital supply chain and trade finance technology solutions for the global metals and mining industry. MineHub’s platform provides real-time visibility and collaboration of upstream and downstream supply chains, while Contour brings together banks, corporates and other ecosystem partners on a common, digital network for trade finance. Both MineHub and Contour are built on enterprise-grade blockchain technology. 

Digital transformation is estimated to generate more than $320 billion of value in the metals and mining industry over the next decade, including $77 billion through integration of technologies* such as Contour and MineHub that enable better data exchange amongst participants. 

The partnership will enable trades on MineHub to flow seamlessly into the Contour network, where a digital Letter of Credit (LC) can be created using API connectivity. MineHub digitises the supply chain by allowing miners to capture mineral digital contracts with buyers and streamline post-trade operations, including document flow, financing, ESG reporting and logistics.  

These trades can then be financed on Contour, which digitises traditional paper-based LC processes, improving transparency and reducing presentation time from up to two weeks to under 24 hours. The two firms also intend to roll out functionality that provides a time status on the progress of LCs within the MineHub platform.  

Working together, MineHub and Contour will bring greater trust and transparency to fragmented metals and mining supply chains and trade finance processes, helping data flow across the world's trade routes, connecting buyers, sellers and their banks.  

Carl Wegner, CEO at Contour said: “Partnering with MineHub is a natural fit as we are both striving to make doing business across borders better and smarter, reducing time, cost and risk. We both use cutting-edge enterprise blockchain technology to deliver on this goal, and the combined power of our offerings will greatly improve how information is shared throughout the lifecycle of a transaction in the metals and mining industry.”  

Arnoud Star Busmann, CEO at MineHub said: “The Contour network is an excellent service to the global trade industry. The combination is a perfect example how network and platform interoperability creates exponential benefits for our shared trade ecosystem. MineHub is focused on digitising the end-to-end post trade management of physical commodity transactions. By connecting the Contour network, this now also includes seamless access to trade finance instruments like LCs from a fast-growing group of global banks.”