DECA Digital Trade Update

The digitalisation of international trade is increasingly recognised as a strategic priority for Australia, with exports and imports underpinning a significant share of national wealth. As global trade systems modernise, efforts to digitise trade documentation, finance and payments are accelerating, supported by the growing utility of Web3 and distributed ledger technologies. Together, these developments are positioning trade digitalisation as a foundational upgrade to global commerce rather than a marginal innovation.

As we flip the calendar, the digital economy is advancing swiftly, especially in various jurisdictional DA legislations, Web3 institutional adoptions, and technologies. These innovations are all touching upon and transforming operations for Traditional Finance – and trickling onto SMEs, and infra players in Trade Digitalisation, even including trade compliance, and customs authorities – driving greater inclusivity, efficiency, and transparency. 

Globally, 2026 is emerging as a key year for blockchain’s role in trade finance and digitising processes. As we all know, decentralised ledgers can support immutable records and smart contracts, streamline cross-border transactions, while lowering costs and risks. What many finance (and trade) professionals are also seeing is more practical adoption of Legal Identity – within an emerging digitalising economy, it is clearly in the minds of central agencies to ensure accountability.

SMEs are already gaining better access to trade finance via tokenised assets and real-world asset (RWA) platforms. Plus, billions in RWAs have been tokenised on networks, enabling faster funding (and stronger returns) outside traditional banking constraints. 

Corporates are increasingly using stablecoins for real-time, 24/7 settlements, with forecasts indicating they will become standard institutional tools by year-end. In fact, XDC’s VC arm just acquired the large digital trade banking platform, Contour, to carry Letters of Credit for large corporate exporters – and their banking partners – and now also with the construction of a ‘stablecoin lab’ with Circle, directly improving the payments flow.

The Export Council projects up to $43 billion in value from digital trade, with blockchain helping exporters manage risks. XDC Network’s emphasis on trade finance, including over $132 million in tokenised USDC for enterprise applications, supports these efforts.

Our government is investing in digital corridors to ease MSME burdens, as illustrated by DFAT’s activities; blockchain DLT pilots with Singapore demonstrate cost savings in document verification. By 2026, projections suggest over 50 governments may operate blockchain systems for trade or currency, with Australia advancing in areas like critical minerals and renewable energy tokenisation. There is an ever-increasing pie to bake, slice and eat! 

On a government and customs front, governments worldwide are pushing paperless trade to reduce processing times from weeks to days, with blockchain providing some aspects of compliance and security. Historically, the bulk of these platforms still typically rely on web2 technological approaches – and realistically, that might be essential foundations.

From a more elevated perspective, the International Trade and Forfaiting Association (ITFA) remains a key player globally in this global ‘Trade and Trade Finance’ story. Their 51st Annual Conference in Singapore (last year) emphasised blockchain innovations in forfaiting, and the upcoming 52nd Conference in Split, Croatia (September 9-11, 2026) will focus on Africa’s trade landscape and digital advancements. 

In October, I MCed the Aus/NZ regional ITFA event, themed on ‘Trade Digitalisation’, hosted at the Macquarie Group HQ – while also panelling on Trade Digitalisation at the Global Legal Entity Identifier (GLEIF) world Forum, held this year at Bloomberg’s Sydney office. These sorts of high-level (often closed-door) gatherings all help to educate, advocate, and integrate blockchain with established trade practices.

A major local milestone worth celebrating is the Attorney-General’s Department’s progress on the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR). In November 2025, the Attorney-General noted the Commonwealth’s proposal to implement MLETR through uniform amendments to electronic transactions acts across jurisdictions. This follows a 2024 public consultation (with feedback analysed into 2025) and reflects strong governmental support for the reform’s economic and productivity benefits. 

Aligning with MLETR would grant electronic versions of key trade records – like bills of lading, and, more generally, bills of exchange – the same legal standing as paper equivalents, boosting industry confidence in paperless processes and accelerating Australia’s transition to digital trade under the Simplified Trade System reforms and TradFi Trade process integrations.

Australia is still mid-cycle, strengthening its position in digital trade, supported by its own historic WTO commitments and tentative LEI adoptions. Globally, great technological strides have evolved; middleware open attestation platforms, like Singapore’s IMDA TradeTrust, provide low-cost, plug-and-play Web3 solutions for supply chain management and paperless trade. This is of immense benefit to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). 

I can reveal we now have a local web3 business testing Document digitisation (via TradeTrust/XDC), and soon local exporters will be able to ‘send’ their trade docs on-chain to MLETR-compliant regions, with all the efficiency gains long touted by web3 trade professionals. This will be amazing to see – local supply chain platforms can now find an outlet to paperless trade WITH digital trade finance and payments. More on that to come! 

Still homing in on APAC, an SME focus between Australia and Singapore, trials of AUDC’s $AUDD stablecoin, and ANZ with A$DC have been revealing the realities of cross-border web3 payments. My close engagement with CloudTech, and AUDD Digital, continues to drive local exporters, in particular small business participation on DLT rails into 2026.

Thanks to DECA members, HopgoodGanim Lawyers and specifically their partner and DA specialist, Tim Edwards, for landing that seminal Trade Digitalisation event (#DTF2026) for September 2026 – after the foundational couple of years stewarded by the Australian Centre of International Trade & Investment (ACITI) – and prior hosting by ANZ Bank. 

Such activities closely align with DECA’s goals and Australia’s push for a digital economy and, as such, support DECA’s national program, including the upcoming 2026 Policy Forum and June’s 2026 Digital Economy Conference. 

Also, the ITFA’s regional activities, including the 2025 Latin America roundtable in Mexico, are expanding, with growing Australian connections through global forums. The ITFA’s 2025 AGM (Singapore) highlighted 40+ events on working capital solutions relevant to local SMEs. As a key participant in these global ecosystems, serving on the regional ITFA board and, more recently, appointed co-chair of the global ITFA’s Fintech subcommittee on Digital Negotiable Instruments (banking paperless trade) and Stablecoins, I have engaged in industry-wide efforts around trade finance and digital corridors. The year ahead looks increasingly busy and fulfilling.

Looking ahead with my Trade activities for XDC Network, you can expect me to curate and promote events like September’s Digital Trade Forum (#DTF2026) in collaboration with DECA, emphasising policy, commercialisation and industry dialogue on paperless trade – and the local financial sectors’ involvement in a Digital Economy with TradeFi. Of course, I have a host of other objectives, but that is for another conversation – feel free to reach out on those broader infrastructure (subnets, eg), digital payments, DeFi and tokenisation discussions!

In summary, Trade in 2026 is set for practical, utility-focused growth in Web3, with blockchain driving paperless efficiencies – bolstered locally by our Attorney-General’s positive appraisal and advancement of MLETR implementation – and options to execute RTGS payments via web3, and tokenisation of trade loans becoming a local reality for MSME’s, and corporates alike. I am certain DECA will continue championing these through our rich event scheduling – giving a voice to this important facet of web3 implementation – as we truly become a Digital Economy.

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