Title: Building a sustainable future: the intersection of circular economy, global value chains, and blockchain technology

Authors: Eduardo Acosta Llano; Pia Hurmelinna-Laukkanen; Lauri Haapanen

Addresses: Oulu Business School, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland ' Oulu Business School, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland ' Oulu Business School, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland

Abstract: The Circular Economy (CE) is a key factor in driving sustainable economic growth. The 3Rs - reducing, reusing and recycling - are essential to the transition to a CE, but effective implementation remains a challenge. Issues include failures of communication, transparency and collaboration, especially given that CE occurs to a notable extent in Global Value Chains (GVCs). Innovations have been proposed to address the related challenges, but the capability of Blockchain Technology (BT) to enhance the CE on a global scale is not well understood. This study explores the potential of BT to support CE principles in GVCs through a multiple-case study of five Nordic multinational enterprises. The results provide insights into transparency, security and dispersion and also control orientation, location specificity and governance as central aspects in CE-oriented GVCs and the potential of BT - especially the public permissioned consortium type - to support them. The study offers a theoretical framework linking BT and CE in the GVC context and suggests avenues for future research.

Keywords: circular economy; blockchain technology; global value chains; sustainability; Industry 4.0.

DOI: 10.1504/EJIM.2025.148802

European Journal of International Management, 2025 Vol.27 No.2, pp.213 - 244

Received: 15 Feb 2023
Accepted: 18 Apr 2024
Published online: 25 Sep 2025 *

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