The ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) Banking Commission has released version 1.0 of its work to develop a high-level framework setting out the standards, rules and obligations for digital trade transactions: Uniform Rules for Digital Trade Transactions (URDTT).

The URDTT are designed to be compatible with UNCITRAL Model Laws, including those on electronic commerce, electronic signatures and transferable electronic documents.

Indeed, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law has been playing an active role in removing or at least reducing legal obstacles to international trade since 1966.

The new URDTT rules fall under the umbrella of the ICC Digital Standards Initiative, established in late 2020 to facilitate the breaking down of existing legal obstacles to the digital trade: interoperability and technological integration, uniformity of digital standards and adoption of the Model Law on Transferable Electronic Documents (MLETR) are the tools used.

The Uniform Rules for Digital Trade Transactions are designed:

- to achieve a fully digital environment, and target not only the banking sector but also enterprises;

- to spread throughout the business ecosystem, including the growing community of non-bank financial service providers;

- to be neutral about technology and messaging standards.

The overall framework for digital trade transactions will involve achieving global standards, coherency and compliance, and above all a collective understanding of terms and definitions.

URDTT are truly important as they consider recent developments in the most varied fields: data analytics, artificial intelligence, smart contracts, natural language processing, machine learning, smart objects and the Internet of Things. All these elements will have a material impact on the way we do business in the future.

For further information, please contact Roberto Brivio to the e-mail address: r.brivio@madv.eu