SKUx and Mondelez Launch Blockchain-Centered Payments Partnership

Digital payments firm SKUx has wrapped up the first phase of a blockchain-focused partnership with Mondelēz.

SKUx is working with the consumer packaged goods giant on a payments innovation project in conjunction with Hedera, an open source enterprise distributed ledger technology (DLT) network, the companies said in a news release Wednesday (Oct. 16).

“The first phase of the innovation project successfully expands upon the current SKUx and Mondelēz customer service program in-market, which was designed to enhance consumer offer experiences by adding a near real-time, SKUx digital payment option alongside coupons, mailed paper checks, and vouchers,” the release said.

The project publicly maps a subset of these payment transactions to the Hedera Network, providing an end-to-end consumer offer experience tied to an immutable record of transaction, the companies added.

“With today’s high volatility in consumer behavior and increasingly complex supply chains, it is critical we focus on digital transformation and leveraging Web3 technologies to increase customer satisfaction and engagement,” said Xiang Xu, global COE leader of digital strategy and blockchain at Mondelēz International, maker of brands such as Ritz and Oreo.

“Our work with SKUx and Hedera provides unmatched transparency and is a real-world example of the transformational opportunity blockchain provides.”

Earlier this year, SKUx teamed with Visa in a partnership designed to “accelerate digital transformation for select merchants and consumer packaged goods companies that leverage SKUx’s payment-based offer solutions,” as the companies said at the time.

According to the release, the SKUx platform is used by several top consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands as the company to end the “outdated physical to digital process of checks, coupons, rebates, and promotional offers.”

The platform is designed to allow companies to “engage directly with their customers by delivering a client branded real-time, Visa digital payment to a mobile device.”

The company’s latest partnership is happening at a moment when blockchain and stablecoin solutions are gaining traction, as PYMNTS wrote last month, as Web3 companies construct infrastructure integrating traditional financial systems and blockchain technology.

In an interview with PYMNTS, Sheraz Shere, GM payments and commerce at Solana Foundation, noted that legitimate and trusted stablecoin issuers have addressed concerns around transparency and regulation, making stablecoins a viable pathway for businesses worried about the risks tied to cryptocurrencies.

“You get the disintermediation, you get the speed, you get the transparency, you get extremely low cost,” he said. “It pops out as a value proposition for particularly strong use cases, like payouts.”