Hitachi and Mizuho strike deal for blockchain supply chain

The two companies have reportedly agreed to test a system built on technology from the open-source Hyperledger blockchain consortium to determine whether they can use an immutable ledger to record orders, invoices and otherwise collect data about company operations.

The ultimate goal, according to the companies, is to develop a record of every transaction that can be accessible by anyone in the company, thereby streamlining the process needed to order an item.

Right now, Hitachis process involves ordering an item, confirming the order, creating an invoice and approving the invoice. Due to technical limitations and reliability issues, however, this process does not always work as desired.
Hitachi intends to incorporate its Lumada Internet of Things platform into the test to aid its data collection efforts and continue to build commercial products.

Notably, this is not Mizuhos first time testing a blockchain platform for the use case, as the company recently completed a trade finance trial with several organisations. Other trials have included a rewards program and a research lab in the US.