Bolero, the online trading platform over which logistics, financial services and commercial organisations can build online trading and settlement solutions, is gaining some significant partners in its effort to persuade the international trading community to move to paperless solutions.

Metals and mining

In October, the world's largest producer of iron ore, Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD), announced that it has signed up to Bolero. In the previous month, four metal industry giants - Posco, Nippon Steel, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto - announced that they would start sending live messages through the Bolero system in the third quarter of 2001. Posco and Nippon Steel are the world's two largest steel producers.

Privatised in 1997, CVRD of Brazil produces steel, bauxite, aluminium, manganese, ferrous-alloy and gold as well as iron ore. The Brazilian government retains a 32 per cent stake in the company while Valepar, a consortium led Brazil's largest private bank, BRADESCO, has a 42 per cent stake.

Critical mass

Bolero has been actively courting mining and metals companies this year and has carried out pilot trials involving BHP Billiton; Rio Tinto subsidiary, Hamersley Iron; South Korean steel company POSCO and Japan's Nippon Steel on exports of iron ore and coal from Australia to Japan and South Korea.

Bolero's commercial director, Peter Scott, reckons the partnership with the four mining and metals companies marks an extremely significant development in their industry. "Where previously a 'Tower of Babel' of incompatible standards existed, through Bolero major competitors have agreed on a common way of doing business over the Internet," he said.

Analysts have said that the success of Bolero - and indeed other online trading and payment solutions - will depend on building a critical mass of users in a particular sector or trading community who will trade with each other. In this context, signing up such major players in the mining and metals industry to Bolero is significant.

Shipping

Another key element of Bolero's strategy has been to sign up major logistics and shipping firms. Notable recent signings in this area include partnerships with two of the largest shipping companies in the world, NYK Line and MOL.

NYK Line has the world's largest shipping fleet measured in number of vessels, while MOL has the largest fleet when measured in dead weight tonnage. The MOL network spans North America, Europe, Asia, Russia, Africa, South America, Australia, and New Zealand.

This article represents the views of the author and not necessarily those of the ICC or any of the other partners in DCPRO.