Steeped in standards: Lloyds, Enigio, Maersk, Cleareye complete first digital Sea Waybill embedding structured data in live transactions - Trade Treasury Payments

Tea has been traded across borders for centuries. What will the digital age mean for a cuppa?

Lloyds, in partnership with shipper Maersk and technology providers Enigio and Cleareye, has completed the first digital trade finance transaction that applied 30 data elements from the ICC DSI KTDDE reference terms from a Sea Waybill. The transaction supported a shipment of tea from Kenya to the UK using a digital Sea Waybill generated through Enigio’s trace:original technology, then processed by Cleareye.

The trial demonstrated full data extraction accuracy and reduced document processing time, offering a case study in the value of structured data in cross-border trade. Structured data fields were embedded in the Sea Waybill, while also referencing key data elements outlined in the International Chamber of Commerce’s (ICC) Key Trade Documents and Data Elements (KTDDE) framework. Cleareye’s ClearTrade platform processed the file automatically, enabling fully automated data extraction without the need for manual input.

While KTDDE serves as a useful vocabulary bridge across document types, the technical implementation in this trial was grounded in a single document standard. Broader multi-document alignment remains a longer-term industry goal.

Moving from OCR to fully embedded data

The KTDDE framework, developed by the ICC’s Digital Standards Initiative (DSI), aligns vocabulary across 36 core trade documents to help improve interoperability across platforms and institutions. However, it is not a full data model for each document type; rather, it identifies common elements shared across documents, acting more as a reference taxonomy than a plug-and-play implementation guide. Individual document types still need to be fully modelled and standardised at the data layer.

While previous pilots have explored individual aspects of digitalisation, this transaction demonstrates the potential when standardised data schemas are combined with broader vocabulary alignment from initiatives like KTDDE.

Pamela Mar, Managing Director of the ICC DSI, said: “The KTDDE framework was developed to connect different data and digital document standards to enable a seamless flow of trade data across the entire supply chain. Frameworks only gain real value through implementation, and we need to develop, test, and refine in order to see it applied widely. This proof of concept does exactly that – by putting KTDDE in operation. It’s an important step forward, not just in validating the framework, but in proving that seamless, data-driven trade is no longer a future aspiration but a real enabler of digitalisation today.”

Oswald Kuyler, at ADB’s Trade & Supply Chain Finance Programme, said, “The ICC DSI began with the KTDDE, a vocabulary and mapping framework spanning 36 key trade documents. More recently, we introduced the KTDDE Implementation Guide (KIG), which defines the data structures for each of those documents. We’re now looking forward to working with Lloyds and Enigio through the KTDDE implementation working groups to help operationalise this framework.”

According to Lloyds, the approach is intended to promote straight-through processing and reduce the need for manual reconciliation. A representative from Lloyds told TTP that in current workflows, document automation platforms are typically able to extract around 90% of data fields from scanned images using OCR, leaving the remaining 10% to be entered manually. Because Enigio’s trace:original embeds a machine-readable JSON file directly into the document — based on a digital standard such as DCSA’s — the trial achieved 100% data extraction accuracy. This illustrates the power of digital-first trade, and highlights the need for similar standardisation efforts across other trade documents, something the ICC DSI is now seeking to coordinate.

Surath Sengupta, Head of Transaction Banking Products at Lloyds, said, “By using structured data, we promote document standardisation from the outset, making them fully machine-readable and minimising the need for manual intervention throughout the transaction. This exciting development highlights our commitment to innovation and efficiency in trade finance, and we look forward to continuing this important collaboration.”

Building a dual-format approach to digital trade

Lloyds noted that the same structure and automation logic would apply to Bills of Lading, which account for a larger share of the bank’s documentary collection flows. While Bills of Lading carry title and could introduce additional legal complexity, parties can achieve digital enforceability by agreeing to an English law framework, which recognises electronic trade documents under the ETDA and aligns with MLETR principles.

The trial also preserved the human-readable visualisation of the document alongside the embedded data. This is important because not all participants (particularly smaller banks, business, or regulators) are ready to process purely data-driven formats. 

Maintaining both human- and machine-readable formats (in this case in a single trace:original document) allows for interoperability and inclusivity during the transition to more universal digital-first processes.

Enigio’s trace:original technology makes digital documents tamper-proof, machine-readable, and legally enforceable under frameworks such as English law, which recognises electronic trade documents via the ETDA and aligns with MLETR principles. While regulatory alignment can support broader adoption, cross-border enforceability can already be achieved where parties contract under a legally compatible framework.

Patrik Zekkar, CEO of Enigio, said, “This is what the future of trade looks like: a single digital document that’s both the legal original and the structured data. It travels across systems, untouched and tamper-proof, ready for full automation. That’s the step change. We’re not just experimenting — we’re executing, with Lloyds and Cleareye and ICC DSI, to bring this approach to scale.”

Cleareye’s platform, ClearTrade, processed the Sea Waybill automatically. According to the firm, aligning with ICC standards ensures the transaction is compatible with regulatory and compliance frameworks while still allowing it to be processed efficiently.

Mariya George, CEO of Cleareye.ai, said, “Our collaboration with Lloyds and Enigio brings together three pioneers committed to redefining the future of trade finance with this ground-breaking solution. At Cleareye, we’re leading the shift from manual, paper-based processes to intelligent automated, and fully digital trade flows; we’re setting a new standard for speed, compliance, and trust. This clearly demonstrates how all parties are firmly aligned with the ICC’s KTDDE initiative and represents a bold step toward a truly digital trade ecosystem.”

Next steps: expanding adoption and refining implementation

The trial was selected based on a real shipment involving parties with whom Lloyds had existing relationships, allowing the bank to closely coordinate document format, data structure, and system integration across the transaction chain. As with many earlier electronic bill of lading (eBL) pilots, the controlled conditions ensured full alignment and successful automation. 

Lloyds told TTP that the initiative brings together two strands of the bank’s strategy: the digitalisation of trade documents and the intelligent automation of document processing. 

Zekkar added, “This was the first step — aligning on vocabulary and proving that the document and the data can move together. It’s how we go from isolated pilots to true interoperability and automation across document types and stakeholders in the trade chain.”

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Despite the success of this transaction, broader adoption of such practices will depend on ecosystem-wide alignment, including among banks, carriers, platforms, and document originators such as ERP vendors and insurers. 

Digital transformation in trade may be driven by code and compliance, but for now at least, it still begins with a proper cup of tea. 

Editor’s note: While the transaction showcases major progress on digital trade enablement, it’s important to distinguish between interoperable data standards (for example, DCSA’s eBL standards) and alignment tools like KTDDE. Full digitisation depends not only on technical interoperability but also on legal clarity, often achieved through contractual agreement under common law systems, such as English law, which now formally recognises electronic trade documents.