Chinese Aerospace Firm Now Uses Blockchain For Electronic Invoice Management
State-owned China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp. is adopting blockchain technology in its bid to improve its cumbersome electronic invoice system. The announcement was made by China’s State Administration of Science, Technology, and Industry for National Defence.
Based on the announcement published at the official state publication People’s Daily on August 13, 2018, the technology will be used to help manage the processing of invoices for taxation purposes across the country. The agency projected that the number of electronic invoices in circulation will hit 54.55 billion by 2022 from 1.31 billion in 2017, thus, the need for a more effective technology to manage them.
How the Aerospace Firm’s Current System Works
The present system used by China Aerospace covers the whole process of invoicing, including the issuance, delivery, filing, inspection, and reimbursement of payments by the taxpayers, as well as the authorities. To date, the system has already processed roughly 2.5 billion invoices.
During the use of the system, the company has experienced some issues and challenges like false-reporting, over-reporting, and traceability problems in the invoice circulation process. This prompted the firm to develop the blockchain-based system to resolve the issues. The new system is expected to result in authenticated and credible invoice issuance, efficient and economical oversight by tax authorities, and very traceable transactions.
Other Blockchain Developments in China
Meanwhile, the southeastern city of Shenzhen has conducted a pilot of its new blockchain ecosystem for invoices. The system was designed by social media platform WeChat developer Tencent, in cooperation with the city’s municipal taxation bureau.
