“Hello World” from the Crypto Valley: first real estate transaction on blockchain
Zug, 1st of March 2019. — The first Swiss property is now “live” on the blockchain. In Baar, in the canton of Zug, the first property was tokenized via the transaction platform of blockimmo — based on blockchain technology. The trade volume amounts to around CHF 3 million. The message of ‘Hello World’ has now gone out from the property in Zug’s Crypto Valley into the whole world. This transaction was made possible by the combined efforts of three Zug companies blockimmo, Elea Labs and Swiss Crypto Tokens. Elea Labs supplied the complete, validated data for the property and Swiss Crypto Tokens enabled the transaction with the ‘CryptoFranc’, a stablecoin linked directly to the Swiss franc.
‘I am delighted that we were able to pull off this premiere, the first property transaction through blockimmo. The platform is the first secure blockchain product for both private and professional investors,’ explains Bastiaan Don, founder and Managing Director of blockimmo.
Tokenizing is the process by which the real asset value of the property is represented digitally on the Ethereum blockchain in token form. This new financing and investment method is a product of blockimmo. It aims to be the global marketplace for tokenizing property. Bastiaan Don:
“Traditional property investments and their issuing programmes have barely moved forward. In Switzerland, you have a non-transparent market with asynchronous information that is difficult to access. This has a negative impact on the liquidity potential of the real estate market. By using blockchain technology, blockimmo enables a solution to a problem, representing a paradigm shift for real estate ownership and trading.”
Property in the canton of Zug
Around CHF 3 million, or 20 percent of the property value, was tokenized before being sold to four investors in a club deal. The tokenized property is located at Grabenstrasse 3 in Baar, in the canton of Zug, and consists of 18 apartments and the ‘Hello World’ restaurant. This makes Baar the site of the first property in Switzerland that also has a ‘digital twin’ on the blockchain. The four transactions were carried out on the Ethereum blockchain and can be verified on the blockimmo platform.
The transaction was supported by Elea Labs, which provided the real estate data of the property. Elea Labs aims to ensure that each building has its own identity or “Property DNA”. This makes the property real — all data about a property is backed up and stored decentralized.
“With the decentralized property register Property DNA we enable users of the blockimmo platform to make a sound investment decision based on complete and validated property data. In the future, the Property DNA will enable a transparent digital due diligence and will also simplify, accelerate and reduce the cost of processes across the entire real estate industry,” explains Martin Schnider, CEO of Elea Labs.
Implementation with CryptoFranc
Price fluctuation risks of cryptocurrencies are eliminated by the implementation of ‘CryptoFranc’, a ‘stablecoin’. The transaction was supported by the crypto broker Bitcoin Suisse, through its subsidiary Swiss Crypto Tokens. For the property in Baar, the investment was carried out with the digital Swiss franc CryptoFranc, or ‘XCHF’, from Swiss Crypto Tokens. Last November, the company launched a digital token pegged to the Swiss franc, of which it has issued CHF 15 million to date. The CryptoFranc serves as a liquidity instrument for the Swiss blockchain ecosystem.
“With the stablecoin CryptoFranc, we have developed a key piece of the puzzle for the Swiss blockchain ecosystem. Blockimmo has utilised this instrument perfectly to realise the future of real estate transactions. Here, one can see a brilliant implementation of the way real estate will move between parties in the decades to come, purely on the blockchain.” explains Armin Schmid, CEO of Swiss Crypto Tokens.
blockimmo planning further expansion
Following this initial step, blockimmo is planning to tokenize further properties that will then be sold by means of a ‘public crowdsale’. All property tokens are expected to be listed in the second quarter of this year on a regulated exchange, which will further improve their fungibility. The blockimmo team is working on a decentralised exchange known as STX.SWISS, which forms the basis for a new system for tokenizing, investing and trading.
“With this market launch and groundbreaking first deal, this technology is now live. We are digitalising real assets together with our partners. We are thankful for the opportunity to shape in a sustainable way the real estate industry and the blockchain community and we look forward to the next step,” says blockimmo’s Bastiaan Don.
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About blockimmo Ltd
blockimmo is a property transaction platform based on blockchain technology. It aims to be the global marketplace for tokenization of real estate. blockimmo works with financial institutions and other strategic partners in various countries and plans to expand exports of blockimmo technology to bring this compelling investment option to as many customers as possible. This ultimately results in a global real estate market that is far more efficient than the present-day stock market. The blockimmo platform enables joint property investments through crowdsales, which enable easier access to this attractive investment class. The platform is easy to use and offers maximum investor protection. The legally compliant ecosystem enables investment and ownership in fractions of properties. Property is officially represented in legally binding form as a security token on the Ethereum blockchain. The blockimmo property transaction platform allows investors to invest in properties with small amounts starting at roughly CHF 1,000. On the other side of the transaction, property owners can achieve top prices for the sale of their real estate. www.blockimmo.ch
About Elea Labs Ltd
Elea Labs is an innovative proptech company based in Baar, Switzerland, in the heart of Switzerland’s Crypto Valley. Led by a team of real estate professionals and driven, digital pioneers with over 15 year’s experience, Elea Labs develops technology solutions for the real estate industry. Currently, it is focused on using data and DLT-technology to build the world’s first Property DNA, a foundational enabler technology that helps eliminate the overwhelming complexity and costs associated with acquiring, operating and selling real estate property. https://elea.io
About Swiss Crypto Tokens Ltd
Swiss Crypto Tokens Ltd. was formed in July 2018 as part of the Bitcoin Suisse Group. The company is based in the canton of Zug, Switzerland’s Crypto Valley. It offers comprehensive services related to the issuing of tokens, including the issue of proprietary tokens. Their first product brought the Swiss franc to the blockchain in the form of the ‘CryptoFranc’, or ‘XCHF’, which currently has 15 million units in circulation, with the stablecoin backed by insured cash on a one-to-one basis. www.swisscryptotokens.ch
