Beam taps blockchain tech to ‘rebuild retail’

The UAE-based mobile wallet app company has developed a platform that aims to change the way we search and shop for products, instead letting the things we need to buy find us using a permissioned blockchain. It claims that the current system of producing products and services, only then looking for customers, costs us $4.5 trillion each year in form of waste, opportunity and cash costs. Beam argues that while companies own parts of our data no one has a clear picture of their audience; a blockchain platform can change this while returning control over data to individuals.

The venture has been operational for five years, processing over four million and $250 million worth of transactions. Retailers onboard include Subway, Carrefour, Tommy Hilfiger, Costa Coffee and ENOC, Dubai’s largest gas station network. Beam is currently live on three continents. It says that it is tapping blockchain technology to open up its platform and accelerate roll-out to other parts of the world.

“Many attempts have been made to improve the retail value chain, however, they all remain iterative in nature or tackle issues on a symptoms-level at best. We are targeting the root cause of the flaws and inefficiencies in the current retail value chain model. These inefficiencies led by outdated models have led to a war on data,” says Serdar Nurmammedov, Founder and CEO.