The push for interoperability and data standards

A central theme in the roundtable was the universal support for interoperability to ensure that all digital trade systems can seamlessly communicate. Participants acknowledged that current initiatives too often operate as siloed “digital islands”, where closed networks of banks or supply chain actors digitise trade documents among themselves.

To break down these silos, common data standards and taxonomies are needed so that documents and data from one system are recognised across others. Beyond this, achieving true interoperability requires agreement not only on technical connection protocols but also on semantic standards (a shared understanding of data fields and definitions) and even procedural alignment across institutions. In other words, systems must not just exchange data, but interpret it consistently and follow compatible workflows.

Encouragingly, the industry has made progress on the standards front. Last year, the ICC DSI released its Key Trade Documents and Data Elements (KTDDE), analysing 36 key trade documents and their data fields.

By incorporating inputs from major standards bodies worldwide, this KTDDE framework lays the foundations for digital trust at scale through secure, verified data sharing. Technical solutions will fall short unless the meaning of data is standardised across platforms.

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