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Estonia’s Digital Agenda 2035 – The World’s Most Ambitious Digital State Project?
Estonia’s new strategy document, Estonia’s Digital Agenda 2035, represents far more than a conventional public-sector IT development plan. In reality, it outlines a vision for an entirely new model of governance in which artificial intelligence, data-driven administration, and automated public services become the central operating mechanisms of the state. Reading… Read more
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Europe’s Tokenized Financial Markets Will Depend on Trust Frameworks, Not Anonymity
European financial markets are entering a structural transformation in which liquidity, settlement, collateral management, and credit distribution are increasingly migrating into programmable digital environments. Stablecoins, tokenized money market funds, tokenized sovereign debt instruments, and digitally transferable collateral are no longer speculative concepts confined to crypto-native ecosystems. They are emerging as… Read more
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Mauritius Moves Toward the Future of Digital Trade: Reform of the Electronic Transactions Act 2026
In 2026, the Government of Mauritius introduced a major reform package to its Electronic Transactions Act through the Electronic Transactions (Amendment) Bill No. V of 2026. The objective of the reform is to modernise the country’s legal framework for digital commerce and strengthen legal certainty for cross-border electronic transactions. The… Read more
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Smart Data and Digital Trade: How Data-Driven Value Chains Could Transform International Trade and Trade Finance
The UK Department for Business and Trade commissioned report “Economic analysis: understanding the costs and benefits of smart data use cases” examines how Smart Data schemes could reshape the economy, supply chains, and financial ecosystems over the next 15 years. The report focuses particularly on the role of Smart Data… Read more
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Why New York Must Modernize Its Electronic Transactions Law
The digital economy has become a central pillar of global commerce and finance over the past decade. Contracts are executed electronically, financial instruments circulate through digital platforms, and an increasing share of assets and legal rights now exist entirely in electronic form. Blockchain technology, distributed ledger technology (DLT), automated transactions,… Read more
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Digital Trade in Africa: Beyond Infrastructure Towards a Functional Digital Economy
Africa’s digital economy is entering a decisive phase. With the adoption of the Digital Trade Protocol under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the continent has taken a major step toward building a unified digital market. Yet, despite strong political momentum, Africa remains a marginal player in global digital… Read more
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From Regulation to Trade Power: Why the EU Must Export Its Digital Rules
The European Union has quietly built one of the world’s most advanced digital regulatory ecosystems. With instruments such as the Digital Product Passport (DPP), electronic Freight Transport Information (eFTI), and eIDAS 2.0, the EU is shaping how data, trust, and compliance function within its internal market. Yet beyond its borders,… Read more
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ISO 20022 Harmonisation as the Backbone of Digital Trade and Logistics Integration
The digital transformation of international trade is accelerating, yet a fundamental bottleneck persists: the fragmentation of payment systems. The study “Fostering ISO 20022 Harmonisation: Cross-border payments interoperability and extension (PIE) task force – Task Team 3, Follow-up report (February 2026)” highlights that while ISO 20022 has been widely adopted, its… Read more
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Inside UNCITRAL’s Push for Digital Payments and Paperless Trade
As global trade becomes increasingly digital, legal systems are racing to keep up. Payments are faster, documents are electronic, and supply chains span jurisdictions with very different rules. Against this backdrop, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) has quietly launched a set of processes that could shape… Read more
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To Policy Makers: Governing Distributed Ledger Technology in Trade
Digital trade is evolving rapidly, and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) is increasingly presented as a solution for improving transparency, efficiency, and trust in commercial transactions. From trade documents and supply chains to payments and digital assets, DLT is often promoted as a transformative infrastructure for modern trade systems. However, technology… Read more