Blockchain-as-a-Service Platform Launched By Software Giant SAP

Announcements, Blockchain | June 8, 2018 By:

Multinational software giant SAP has launched a blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform that will help SAP users integrate the company’s various solutions into blockchain.

SAP is a European multinational software corporation that makes enterprise software to manage business operations and customer relations. It focuses on 25 industries and six industry sectors: process industries, discrete industries, consumer industries, service industries, financial services and public services. It offers integrated product sets for large enterprises, mid-sized companies and small businesses. The company claims to have over 335,000 customers in over 180 countries.

Announced during the company’s Sapphire customer conference on Wednesday, the blockchain-as-service platform, called SAP Cloud Platform Blockchain, was built on top of the firm’s SAP HANA data management system. It will provide support for Hyperledger Fabric, the blockchain platform launched by the Linux Foundation, and MultiChain, a private blockchain solution for banks.

The platform will allow corporate customers to develop new applications and networks and extend existing apps to apply blockchain capabilities. The service is targeted at manufacturing and supply chain applications, particularly in areas like food and pharmaceuticals where product safety is critical.

Gil Perez, SVP for product and innovation at SAP, stated the company had opted to launch its product even though most enterprise customers are still making their first steps in the proof-of-concept space. He added that the platform is flexible and offers compatibility with more blockchain approaches to give customers greater freedom of choice while the technology is growing.

In addition to its BaaS platform, SAP also announced a blockchain consortium with seven founding members, including Intel, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, UPS, and A3 by Airbus SE. The goal of the consortium is to accelerate adoption of blockchain technology and best practices through the global transportation industry.

SAP now joins other enterprise companies like Oracle, IBM, Microsoft and Amazon who have previously released blockchain services for their customers.