A U.S.-based blockchain firm, Securitize, which specializes in tokenizing real-world assets, launches its operations in Europe.
Tokenization refers to turning more traditional financial assets such as stocks and bonds and issuing them on a blockchain.
“Securitize is now the first firm to be able to issue and trade tokenized securities in both the U.S. and Europe, and is the first firm to do so under the EU’s new pilot regime for digital assets,” Barcelona-born Securitize co-founder Carlos Domingo said in a statement.
He added, “European businesses will be a major beneficiary of this innovation, giving businesses a new way to raise capital through primary capital raises, and obtain potential tax benefits and liquidity through secondary trading.”
Securitize has already initiated the issuance of tokens representing equity in the Spanish real estate investment trust, Mancipi Partners.
The Spanish General Secretariat of the Treasury and International Finance approved the firm to deploy digital asset securities to a small number of businesses and investors under supervised “sandbox” conditions.
Spain’s sandbox environment is an important step for Securitize, as it allows the company to conduct real-world trials before obtaining the necessary licenses.
After around six months, the sandbox period expires. The firm gets the go-ahead from the European Union Pilot Regime, Securitize plans to issue, manage, and trade tokenized securities in Spain and the EU more broadly.
The shares are tokenized on the Avalanche blockchain, and secondary trading of these tokenized shares is expected to begin in September.
In May, Securitize partnered with the asset Hamilton Lane to boost investor exposure to offer tokenized security.
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