One of the world’s largest makers of semiconductors and smartphones is considering blockchain technology for their global supply network, Bloomberg reported this morning. Samsung SDS, Samsung’s IT subsidiary, is looking to the technology to cut costs. Song Skwang-woo, Samsung’s VP and blockchain chief, thinks that adding blockchain to its current systems could cut costs up to 20%.

The South Koreans tech giant added Nexledger last year, which functions as a transaction management tool. Last year, Kwang-woo said in a press conference when announcing Nexledger:

“In developing our blockchain platform, we thought hard about how to merge our strengths and know-how from our system integration service expertise with the advantages of blockchain technology.”

Now the company believes that Samsung’s entire global supply network could be transferred and held on the blockchain. Its 2018 shipping volumes are set for over 480,000 tons of air cargo and over one million shipping containers.

Change is Coming for Samsung

Blockchain technology has proved to be revolutionary for many sectors of our lives including healthcare, cross-border payments, and supply chain management. Gartner Inc predicted recently that blockchain-related businesses will create $176 billion of value by the year 2025. Blockchain technology helps save time and money with the step-by-step processes of global trade. Paperwork is sent back and forth to various port authorities and customs, and can often take weeks to fully process. With the information stored on the blockchain, details of the cargo are available immediately, speeding up the entire process.

Cheong Tae-su, Professor of industrial engineering at Korea University, said:

“It cuts overhead and eliminates bottlenecks. It’s about maximizing supply efficiency and visibility, which translates into greater consumer confidence.”

With blockchain’s transparency and ease of use, it can save large corporations like Samsung lots of time and money shipping their products overseas. Global trade last year averaged over $16 trillion USD.