AURA Blockchain Consortium for Luxury Goods Authentication
Sector: Tertiary sector · Industry: E-commerce · Organisation: LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton · Maturity level: Production
The AURA Blockchain Consortium is an industry-wide platform for luxury goods authentication, founded in 2021 by LVMH, Prada Group, Cartier, and OTB Group. The platform registers each luxury product with a unique digital identity on the blockchain and enables complete traceability throughout the supply chain. With over 70 million registered products and more than 50 member brands, the consortium successfully combats counterfeiting and strengthens customer trust in product authenticity.
Documentation status
- Project status: Production
- Evidence: Evidence high
- Editorial review: Ufuk Avci, 15 April 2026
Description
The Aura Blockchain Consortium was founded on 20 April 2021 by LVMH, Prada Group, and Cartier (Richemont) as a non-profit platform. Technically, the private blockchain is based on ConsenSys technology and Microsoft. Each product receives a unique digital ID linked to the customer ID — an immutable chain of digital blocks documents the complete product biography from raw materials to sale and resale.
The Aura Blockchain Consortium is the first global blockchain specifically for the luxury industry. Founded on 20 April 2021 by LVMH (via Louis Vuitton), Prada Group (via Prada), and Cartier (part of Richemont), later joined by OTB Group. The platform is structured as a non-profit organisation and accessible to all luxury brands worldwide — not just the founders. Toni Belloni, LVMH Managing Director: "A unified industry solution significantly eases the customer experience, instead of having to deal with multiple different solutions." Technically: ConsenSys + Microsoft, private blockchain. Each product receives a digital ID linked to a customer ID. Active brands at launch: Bulgari, Louis Vuitton, Hublot, Cartier, and Prada. For example, Hublot offers digital e-warranties that customers can verify via smartphone photo. Louis Vuitton uses Aura for LV Diamond certificates. By 2024: over 50 member brands, over 60 million registered products. LVMH alone encrypted over 580,000 products in 2023 for Fendi, Celine, and Givenchy (200% increase vs. 2022). The consortium is working on compliance with the EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation and the Digital Product Passport.
Perspectives
B2B — organisations perspective
Luxury brands can manage their product biographies directly via Aura — without their own blockchain infrastructure. This significantly lowers the barrier for smaller brands. At the same time, they better control the resale market, as ownership transfers are documented on the blockchain.
B2C — consumers perspective
Customers can access the authenticity, origin, and complete product biography of a luxury item via smartphone — without third-party certification. Upon resale, buyers receive blockchain-based proof of ownership that is tamper-proof.
Employees perspective
Brand teams can communicate material origin, craftsmanship quality, and production processes directly to end customers — without intermediaries. Anti-counterfeiting and grey market control operate via the shared platform.
Benefits
General
- Blockchain-based authentication creates immutable product identities that make counterfeiting practically impossible.
- The consortium structure enables industry-wide standards and cost-sharing in technology development.
- Over 70 million registered products demonstrate the scalability and practical feasibility of the solution.
B2B — organisations
- Companies benefit from improved brand protection and strengthened customer trust through transparent product authentication.
B2C — consumers
- Customers gain immediate certainty about the authenticity of their luxury purchases through simple smartphone verification.
Employees
- Employees receive efficient digital tools for quality assurance and customer service regarding authentication queries.
Challenges
General
- Integrating NFC chips into all products requires changes in established manufacturing processes and additional investments.
- Coordinating over 50 member brands with different technical systems and processes is complex.
B2B — organisations
- Companies must connect existing ERP systems to the AURA platform via standardised APIs and train employees in new technologies.
Employees
- Introducing new digital authentication procedures requires retraining and adjustments to traditional workflows.
Technology foundation
AURA uses a private blockchain with a Proof-of-Authority protocol, which is energy-efficient and offers high security. The blockchain-agnostic solution integrates NFC chips and RFID technology directly into products, enabling seamless linking between physical luxury goods and their digital identity on the blockchain.
Implementation examples
OTB Group full integration into production processes
OTB Group wanted to pioneer in the luxury sector by strengthening customer trust in the authenticity of their products while setting innovative standards for the entire industry. The implementation was to cover the complete product lifecycle from manufacture to resale.
OTB Group fully integrated AURA into the production processes and registered over 1.8 million products from its brands Marni, Maison Margiela and Jil Sander.
As a steering member of the AURA consortium, the OTB Group was the first corporate group to introduce digital authenticity certificates for all products of its luxury brands. Since 2022, all garments and accessories from Marni, Maison Margiela and Jil Sander have been equipped with NFC chips and registered on the AURA platform. The number of registered products doubled from 2023 to 2024 to over one million products, reaching a cumulative total of 1.8 million registered items.
The full integration into existing production processes required adjustments to manufacturing workflows and training of employees in the new blockchain technology. Scaling across multiple brands with different product categories posed additional coordination challenges.
Tags
Product authentication, Supply chain transparency, Counterfeit protection, NFC integration, Luxury goods