2005 Press Release
Singapore, 14 July 2005 -Leading IT services provider CrimsonLogic today announced the successful completion of a pilot project between Singapore's Public Key Infrastructure Forum (PKIFS) and Japan's Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Forum to enhance cross-border trade. The 6-month long pilot project, completed in June this year, uses the CertOfOrigin system to transmit trade information through the electronic Certificates of Origin (CO) between Singapore and Japan. This will benefit both countries' trading communities by lowering business communications costs while increasing efficiency and productivity.
COs are used to declare that goods traded are from a certain origin. The webbased CertOfOrigin system provides a single interface for the exporters and their agents to submit and digitally sign for a CO application. It also allows the approving officers to reliably and conveniently approve and certify CO applications. CrimsonLogic's CertOfOrigin system is built on Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and supporting security-related technologies to provide a secured platform for crossborder transactions.
With this pilot project, CrimsonLogic aims to achieve the immediate transmission of approved CO and other trading documents (such as shipping documents for bills of ladings, commercial invoices and packing lists) to designated recipients such as customs officers, banks and overseas buyers via the Japan PKI Forum, all within a secure electronic environment.
“CrimsonLogic is pleased to be working with the Japan PKI Forum to gain crossborder trade acceptance of electronic transmission of Certificates of Origin between Singapore and Japan traders,” says Mr V. Mathivanan, CEO of CrimsonLogic. “Japan is the second largest economy in the world, after the US, and the successful completion of this pilot project encourages us to showcase the benefits to other trading countries in Asia.”
Based on the success of this pilot, CrimsonLogic plans to target Hong Kong, Korea and Taiwan with its world-first CertOfOrigin system for the exchange of electronic CO with these countries. The objective is to strengthen Singapore's role as an electronic trading hub for cross-border trade in the region.
According to a recent report from the United Nations, the Asia Pacific region as a whole posted an economic growth of 7.2 percent in 2004, the strongest in nearly 30 years. Asian Development Bank estimated that exports for Japan, Hong Kong, Korea and Taiwan together were valued at US$1.22 trillion in 2004, while imports last year totalled US$1.05 trillion. Singapore, with its highly skilled workforce and pro-industry government is well-poised to become the central hub for trading activities in Asia.
“Electronic Certificates of Origin is an important step towards realising the full potential of ICT in facilitating cross-border trade,” said Mr Khoong Hock Yun, Assistant Chief Executive at IDA Singapore. “CrimsonLogic has been an active participant in the Asia PKI Forum, representing Singapore's efforts towards a connected and secured e-trading community. CrimsonLogic's successful cross-border trade pilot with Japan PKI Forum is a good showcase of Singapore companies to exploit PKI technology to roll-out innovative and secure eBusiness solutions,” noted Khoong.
“This pilot project signifies the first step the Singapore trading community is taking towards the eBusiness way of document transmission for Singapore and Japan by connecting the Singapore and Japan trading communities with eBusiness solutions via CrimsonLogic,” added Mathivanan.