Can Web3 Solve Trump’s Tariff Wars? This Startup Thinks So

As President Donald Trump rolls out his latest round of import taxes on what he has declared “Liberation Day” (April 2, 2025), Web3 startup Watr is launching a blockchain-based platform in the United States designed to automatically track and validate tariffs on global goods to prevent trade bottlenecks. While bold claims are common in the decentralized tech sector, Watr’s platform is already actively utilized by major mining corporations and automotive manufacturers to verify commodities, suggesting its technology holds genuine commercial merit.

Heavyweight Leadership and Multi-Million Dollar Backing

Led by Maryam Ayati, the former head of global origination and investment at Shell Trading, Watr was established by a team of seasoned executives from BP, Shell, and JP Morgan. This deep industry expertise gives the startup significant credibility in the complex world of global trade. While Watr’s backing includes an undisclosed syndicate of crypto venture capital firms and commodity executives, financial records indicate the company has already secured several million dollars in funding alongside partnerships with unnamed commodity giants.

Real-Time Tracking via Satellites and Sensors

In a recent call, Ayati explained how the system plans to scale its data collection capabilities to ensure absolute accuracy. “We will also soon be able to augment reported data with machine-sourced data from the myriad of satellites, sensors, and open source repositories out there watching to see where commodities have come from… were they transferred from a different ship on the sea, for instance?” Ayati said.

Stopping Tariff Evasion Before Transactions Occur

The most compelling use case for trade regulators involves pre-checking commodities for tariffs before any transaction is finalized. This capability addresses a major loophole currently exploited in international markets.

“Some non-western governments we’ve spoken to say that Western-country commodities traders sometimes claim that a commodity they’ve bought will be going to, for example, Europe, but then it’s sent to, for example, an Asian market,” Ayati explained. “And they make a lot more money on that because they don’t give the correct cut to the original commodity owners. With our system, the minute tariffs are due, even before money changes hands, the commodity can be checked for whether a tariff is due or not.”

By automating this verification process, Watr could potentially mitigate the trade bottlenecks and economic slowdowns often caused by complex tariff implementations. With the global commodities industry valued at $20 trillion, the financial implications of streamlining these processes are immense.

How Watr’s Blockchain Infrastructure Works

To achieve this level of transparency, Watr utilizes advanced blockchain-based tooling. The platform assigns decentralized identifiers (DIDs) to institutions and creates unique digital fingerprints for raw materials, ensuring that every asset can be traced from its origin to its destination.

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Ayati emphasizes that the project is focused on practical utility rather than speculative digital assets. “This isn’t about token hype,” she stated. “It’s about transforming how trust, traceability, and liquidity work in the real world.”

Pivoting from ESG to Sanctions and Tariffs

When Watr debuted in 2022, its primary focus was creating a “nutrition label” for commodities to track regulatory compliance, carbon emissions, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics. However, as corporate interest in ESG has cooled, the startup pivoted its focus toward sanctions and tariff compliance.

This shift allows clients to verify the exact provenance of raw materials, ensuring they do not inadvertently violate international sanctions or tariff laws before executing a trade.

Leveraging the Avalanche Blockchain for Scale

To support this pivot, Watr recently announced its migration to the Avalanche blockchain network. Developed by Ava Labs, Avalanche enables enterprises to deploy custom, “sovereign chains” tailored to specific industry requirements—a feature highly suited for the institutional commodities market. The Avalanche network is already trusted and used by major entities, including JP Morgan, Citibank, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

A History of Blockchain in Commodities Trading

Watr is not the first player to propose blockchain as a solution for supply chain inefficiencies. In 2017, the agricultural digital exchange “The Seam” partnered with IBM to pilot blockchain-based cotton trading, aiming to boost transparency in agricultural supply chains.

Similarly, in 2018, a consortium of financial and energy giants—including Shell, ING, and ABN AMRO—backed the komgo initiative. This platform sought to digitize trade finance documentation, such as letters of credit and Know Your Customer (KYC) records, to minimize fraud and administrative delays. Notably, Ayati was also involved in the development of the Komgo project. Despite these high-profile launches, many early blockchain initiatives in this space have failed to achieve long-term viability.

The Skeptic’s View: Will Market Adoption Follow?

Industry experts remain cautious but optimistic about Watr’s prospects. Keld van Schreven, founding partner of independent Web3 venture capital firm KR1, shared his perspective, noting that Watr’s success will ultimately depend on market validation.

“We’ve seen plenty of grand claims from web3 startups on supply chains, but if Watr can truly bring pre-trade tariff validation ‘onchain’ to scale — especially with backing from major players and a seasoned leadership team — this could mark a serious inflection point for blockchain adoption in global trade,” Van Schreven said. He added that the transition to Avalanche indicates the team is prioritizing scalability, though “the proof will be in actual transaction volume and industry adoption beyond the initial pilot stage.”