IOTA Co-Founder Highlights Trade Finance Innovation With TWIN

• IOTA founder Dominik Schiener says TWIN supports digital trade records, faster checks, and smoother data sharing across cross-border finance networks.
• TWIN has been linked to Kenyan pilots, Rwanda trade finance use cases, and live consignments on the IOTA mainnet.

IOTA co-founder Dominik Schiener has again placed trade finance at the center of the network’s strategy, pointing to TWIN as a key part of that effort. In his appearance at the World Crypto Forum in South Korea, Schiener discussed TWIN in a session focused on the tokenization of raw materials and minerals, linking the project to a broader push to modernize trade infrastructure. 

The project centers on trusted data exchange. In trade finance, lenders often depend on documents that take time to verify across several parties.TWIN intends to minimize that delay by designing a system where records can be sent in electronic format and verified instantly. This model supports faster document handling while also improving traceability across supply chains.

Schiener also pointed to trade finance conditions in markets where borrowing costs remain high. In Rwanda, TWIN aims to introduce tokenized warehouse receipts and books of ownership as a means to facilitate finance on verifiable trade assets. Under that structure, businesses can rely on documented goods and inventory records in order to enhance access to funding. The model also introduces an opportunity for stablecoin-based liquidity to trade collateral that may be verified digitally.

Previously, Schiener featured in a leading Korean business newspaper discussing blockchain-based trade infrastructure and digital trade systems. CNF noted that the coverage was focused on IOTA’s role in TWIN.

IOTA’s Digital Trade Systems and Regional Rollout

The trade finance focus is also tied to IOTA’s work in East Africa. In Kenya, the foundation cited an initiative that connected 34 government systems for trade-related data verification. That effort fits into a wider push to improve coordination between public institutions and private sector participants. TWIN seeks to support faster movement of information across the trade cycle.

The consortium behind TWIN includes TradeMark Africa, the World Economic Forum, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, the Institute of Export and International Trade, and the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation. This network is an effort to place digital trade infrastructure within existing trade systems rather than outside them.

Through this approach, TWIN is a platform for document verification, customs coordination, and financing support. The broader goal is to make trade data easier to trust and easier to use across borders. For IOTA, that places blockchain within the day-to-day mechanics of trade finance rather than solely within asset speculation.

In late February, IOTA launched a sustainability page that publishes network energy use, emissions data, and MiCA-related indicators for disclosure purposes. CNF highlighted that the page listed annualized electricity use at 387,377.16 kWh and CO₂ emissions at 100,404.12 kg, based on CCRI data.

Additionally, Orobo deployed its Digital Product Passport model on IOTA Rebased, giving products a unified, traceable record to meet upcoming EU compliance requirements. CNF covered how the framework combines lifecycle data, privacy features, and traceability across sectors such as batteries, construction, electronics, and food.

IOTA traded at $0.06475 at the time of reporting, up 1.75% over 24 hours, with $10.5 million in daily volume and a $278.91 million market cap.