Blockchain in retail: the past week at a glance

Bitcoin scammers compromise Tesco Twitter account

Tesco was left red faced this week as hackers took over its Twitter account to push a Bitcoin scam.

The retailer, which has almost 550,000 Twitter followers, announced it would give away free Bitcoins in return for investments. The hackers used Microsoft founder Bill Gates’s avatar and changed Tesco’s handle to ‘Billgatesmsc.’

“Bitcoin is on the rise again! One day, it will without doubt replace fiat currencies,” one tweet declared. “I’d like to give back to the community, therefore any Bitcoin you send to this address, I will send back double! Comment your BTC address below when done.”

The hackers failed to make off with any cash. It remains unclear as to how they managed to compromise the account. Tesco tweeted: “We are aware of some issues with our @Tesco account and are urgently resolving the situation. If you need to contact us in the meantime please visit https://www.tesco.com/help/contact/ for alternative ways to get in touch”.

Circle K adds Bitcoin ATMs to 20 convenience stores

US-based crypto venture DigitalMint has teamed with convenience store chain, Circle K, installing 20 Bitcoin ATMs across Arizona and Nevada as part of a pilot programme.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with a respected organisation like Circle K,” says Marc Grens, President and Co-Founder, DigitalMint. “This opens the door for massive expansion of Bitcoin access to new markets around the globe.”

Customers can buy up to $20,000 in Bitcoin per day. DigitalMint charges 12% of a transaction, although rate reductions are available. The Arizona ATMs are located in Phoenix, Mesa, Tempe, Tucson, Flagstaff, Surprise, Maricopa and Nevada ATMs in Las Vegas. DigitalMint says that the partnership makes it the largest Bitcoin ATM and PoS operator in the US. It currently has over 250 locations in 25 states.

Joel Konicke, Category Manager, Circle K Stores, comments: “Partnering with DigitalMint allows us to provide our customers with seamless access to Bitcoin, at a very reasonable price.”

Alyx taps blockchain tech for supply chain pilot

Alyx – the fashion brand founded by Lady Gaga creative director and Kanye West collaborator Matthew Williams  – has launched a blockchain-powered supply chain transparency pilot programme in partnership with Iota, Avery Dennison and Evrythng.

Vogue Business reports that some Alyx product hang tags will feature a scannable QR code that showcases the entire supply chain history of the piece it’s attached to. Alyx’s suppliers enter the information, and Evrythng stores and uploads the data to the ledger while Avery Dennison makes tags with digital IDs for each garment. Nine Alyx pieces are included in the pilot, but Williams would ultimately like to include all his products.

The barrier to entry was relatively low for Alyx, which is only four years old and produces 80% of its products in Italy with suppliers who take transparency seriously. The next step, meanwhile, might be automating the process so it can be scaled. 

“The key is identifying the right nodes of the supply chain from where to pull data and then determining how to most efficiently extract that data,” says Michael Colarossi, Avery Dennison’s Vice President of Apparel Innovation, Product Line Management and Sustainability, adding that future integration could mean extracting data directly from manufacturing systems.

Walmart taps Vechain Thor blockchain for food safety project

Walmart China is tracking food through its supply chain with VeChain’s Thor blockchain.

The Walmart China Blockchain Traceability Platform is a joint venture between Walmart China, China Chain-Store & Franchise Association (CCFA), PwC, Inner Mongolia Kerchin Co. and VeChain. The first batch of 23 product lines have been tested and launched on the platform and another 100 are set to follow by the end of the year, covering more than 10 categories including fresh meat product, rice, mushrooms and cooking oil.

The aim is for traceable fresh meat to account for 50% of the total sales of packaged fresh meat, traceable vegetables to account for 40% of the total sales of packaged vegetables, and traceable seafood for 12.5% of the total sales of seafood by the end of 2020.

“We have always worked to provide reliable products of quality and convenient services to customers, which is our core value proposition,” says Shi Jiaqi, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer of Walmart China.

“With this target in mind, Walmart has continuously invested in the whole supply chain, from source procurement and commodity strategy, supply chain construction, to store and e-commerce platform operation management. We use digital methods to improve efficiency and transparency, providing products and services of quality to customers and making life better for busy families in China.”