Smart Containers Group, Blockchain-Based Logistics Company for Food and Pharmaceuticals, Announces Acceptance of Cryptocurrencies as Payment

Zug, Switzerland, January 18, 2024 – Smart Containers Group, the Swiss-based high-tech logistics company and manufacturer of the world’s safest temperature-controlled containers for the food and pharmaceutical industries, today announced that one of its divisions, SkyCell AG, will accept cryptocurrency payments for its services, beginning January 19 2018. This innovation aims to expedite transaction times for clients, and marks a decisive step towards further integrating blockchain technologies into the logistics industry.

Smart Containers Group, through its SkyCell AG division, has been a leading manufacturer of temperature-controlled containers for pharmaceuticals since its inception in 2012. In the industry as a whole, 8.5% of pharmaceutical goods are harmed during shipping and an estimated 40% of vaccinations eventually underperform due to inadequate shipping conditions (Source: WHO and WEF). Offering a solution through innovative, custom-built smart containers, SkyCell AG offers the safest logistics service within the pharmaceuticals industry. This has been verified by 12 of the 20 largest pharmaceutical manufacturers globally, who have independently validated the performance of SkyCell AG service offering.

“At SkyCell AG we aim to put three core principles into practice – innovation, reliability, and sustainability. These three tenets have helped us to establish ourselves as one of the top four providers of Pharma containers in the industry. We have recognised the dramatic potential of blockchain technology in transforming the logistics and pharmaceutical industries and are proud to be an early-adopter within the sector,” said Richard Ettl, CEO and Co-Founder of Smart Containers Group.

Already embracing cutting-edge and highly efficient technologies, Smart Containers Group’s decision to accept cryptocurrencies as payment is geared towards expediting processing times and minimising costs for clients, making more traditional payment methods, which rely on third-parties and are often unavoidably tedious and expensive as a result, obsolete. The instantaneous nature of transactions conducted using cryptocurrency will also serve to minimise the effects of fluctuating currency exchange rates – which can heavily impact payments made in a number of global currencies as a result of elongated processing times.

“From our experience within the logistics, pharmaceutical, and food industries – we have first-hand experience of the difficulties which payments processes can pose to clients. Often, banking fees can make up as much as 5% of invoice value, with traditional transfers taking up to 90 days, meaning payments alone are very costly both financially and in terms of efficiency. By introducing the possibility of conducting transactions through cryptocurrency, Smart Containers Group will reduce payment processes to a matter of minutes, while cutting out third party handling fees entirely,” added Ettl.

From January 19, all SkyCell AG invoices will include the possibility to settle the invoice in cryptocurrency, giving customers the option of paying in BTC or ETH, as well as EUR, USD, and CHF. All exchange rates will be taken from Bitstamp at the moment of transfer, negating the issue of fluctuating exchange prices which plague the current marketplace. Customers conducting payments in BTC or ETH will also enjoy a 2% discount on all invoices for SkyCell AG services – further compounding the benefits which cryptocurrency payments can accrue.

“For SkyCell AG, accepting payments in cryptocurrency is the first step in automatizing the payments process, and complements our long-term vision of providing fully autonomous containers of the future, which will administer themselves entirely based on smart contract technology. The logistics industry has been characteristically slow to implement and adopt transformative technologies and we hope that by embracing change, others may follow suit so that the industry as a whole will benefit,” concluded Ettl.

SkyCell AG has already announced world class partnerships with a number of major airlines, specializing on pharmaceuticals including CargoLux and Emirates SkyCargo.

For more information visit www.smartcontainers.ch

About Smart Containers

Smart Containers Group is a Swiss based, high tech company that provides temperature controlled containers to transport sensitive pharma goods and food around the world. Through its division, SkyCell AG, it is the fourth largest provider of containers globally, focused on transporting temperature sensitive goods in the pharmaceutical industry.

SkyCell AG has found a way to bring medicine direct to the individual consumer quickly and safely, which has never been done in a cost effective manner before. Skycell AG’s containers are also environmentally friendly, replacing the disposable styrofoam and ice filled boxes that are usually used to transport medicine, with technologically sophisticated, compact, reusable containers.

About Richard Ettl

Growing up in Vienna, Austria and studying in Stanford and the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, Richard started his career at Bobst Group, a leading producer of packaging machines worldwide. In 2009, he decided to launch his own business, with long-time friend Nico Ros. After wide-reaching scientific research and various proof of concepts, they founded Smart Containers Group, as well as SkyCell in 2012. Since then he has lead both companies to commercial success, developed strategic partnerships, and stoked investor interest, as well as convincing more and more clients of the unrivalled benefits of the SkyCell offer.