IKEA in 'World First' Trade Transaction Using Smart Contracts and Licensed E-Money

The transaction was carried out on a platform provided by supply chain management firm Tradeshift and used "programmable digital cash" from ConsenSys-backed Monerium, according to an announcement from Tradeshift on Tuesday. Specifically, Nordic Store bought goods from IKEA and settled an e-invoice using Monerium's tokenised Icelandic krona.

Monerium and Tradeshift suggested the "world's first" transaction shows that "government-regulated, programmable e-money is ready for mainstream markets."

As reported in June, Reykjavik-based Monerium was licensed by the Financial Supervisory Authority of Iceland (FME) as its first Electronic Money Institution, making the startup the first to have regulatory approval to provide fiat payment services over blockchain systems across the European Economic Area.