The eBL removes the courier leg for original documents, which can take days off the release timeline, and it is the direction the industry has committed to: DCSA member carriers have pledged to move fully to electronic bills of lading by 2030. Adoption still depends on every party in the chain being on a compatible platform, so in practice a forwarder manages a mix of eBL and paper today.
Glossary
Electronic Bill of Lading (eBL)
A digital bill of lading that carries the same three legal functions as the paper original (receipt, contract of carriage, document of title) in electronic form, exchanged through an approved platform.