OriginTrail, a European IT company known for its traceability solutions, announced last month its development of the first blockchain protocol that is purpose-built for data exchange between organizations along the supply chain. The company will launch a token sale, or initial coin offering (ICO), this month with a mission to make decentralized data exchange available to every organization and enable mass adoption to increase trust and efficiencies on a global scale.

OriginTrail offers a decentralized, off-blockchain network, purpose-built for the needs of supply chains. It makes blockchain-supported data operations fast and cost-efficient, and addresses the $525 billion world supply chain market.

A decentralized, off-chain peer-to-peer network that safely combines supply chain data from different IT systems, OriginTrail’s protocol can bring together the best of both worlds by connecting with any blockchain and any company IT system. This makes for a low adoption barrier, and stores only fingerprints of data on a blockchain. Original data is kept encrypted on a decentralized network, which enables development of decentralized apps on top of it. The protocol supports GS1 global standards for data exchange and can include Internet-of-Things data.

“Our vision is to bring data integrity and transparency to supply chains worldwide. We are proud that our innovative, blockchain-based data integrity solution was already recognized by the global leaders who share our vision for transparent supply chains as a precondition for protecting consumers and brands, as well as increasing efficiencies on a global level,” says Tomaz Levak, co-founder and CEO of OriginTrail.