Tokenization is Now Free
Welcome to your Swarm Newsletter for February 7th, 2019
Swarm now offers no-fee issuance of security tokens on its platform
Issuers of security tokens (STOs) are normally required to pay hefty fees to launch their STO offerings. Not anymore. Swarm has introduced new pricing model that eliminates these up-front fees. Instead, Swarm asks the STO issuer to set up a funding goal for the new securities to be issued. After reaching the funding goal, the issuer gets a stake of between 0.3 and 1 percent in Swarm’s utility token, thus supporting the technology and the ecosystem. The new pricing model is getting great reviews. Business Insider calls it a “game-changer”, the Block states it “may be just what securities need.” Invest in Blockchain comments: “With the new no-fee issuance of securities on the platform, Swarm’s plan to offer investors across the world a wide variety of tokenized assets is only more likely to succeed.”
Read Invest in Blockchain, The Block, Business Insider (subscription required)
Blog: Tokenization Should Be Free
Speaking to the news mentioned above, Swarm CIO Timo Lehes published a blog post going further into detail on the thinking behind eliminating fees. He highlights key learnings from 2018, and elaborates on how the new Swarm staking model is a big step toward the larger goal of disrupting the traditional financial services space.
Read Tokenization Should Be Free by Swarm CIO Timo Lehes
Blog: Fiat Gateway: Why it’s a key element for security tokens
As reported in the previous Swarm Intelligence newsletter, investors can now commit USD, EUR, CHF, GBP and 30 other fiat currencies to invest in tokenized assets via the Swarm platform. In his blog, Sam Stone explains how this fiat gateway aligns with Swarm’s goal to improve access to financial opportunities for all. In answering the question “Is the invitation to invest in digitized securities with fiat a threat to crypto?”, he is convinced that “as investors receive their security token allocations, and use tokens for voting, and other functions are made possible by cryptocurrency, the benefits become clear.”
Read the blog, read the press release, and learn how to invest with fiat on Swarm
Security Token Network partners with Swarm to deliver security token solutions to their clients
Security Token Network (STN) and Swarm have signed a partnership agreement that enables STN to deliver security token offerings (STOs) to their clients via the Swarm platform. STN is building out a full-stack STO service, and need issuance partners who can support a wide variety of client needs. STN CEO Richard Foster explains why he selected Swarm to be STN’s issuance partner: “What initially attracted us to Swarm was the low-cost of token issuance and also their usage of the Stellar blockchain. As we worked with the team it became apparent that they are closely aligned with large financials to build a platform that has the feature set to support digital assets at any scale.”
Read the press release and ‘like’ the LinkedIn post by Swarm COO Chris Eberle
SWARM IN THE NEWS
Vertalo maps ‘who is who’ in the security token ecosystem
Vertalo, a vendor of sophisticated digital asset lifecycle management solutions, has published a map of the most prominent players in the security token ecosystem, sorted by role. This practical guide is particularly useful for those who find it hard to keep up with the crypto developments and can’t see the forest for the trees. Be sure to check back regularly as this ecosystem is rapidly changing.
Check out the Vertalo STO ecosystem
SWARM UP CLOSE
Swarm returned to Miami for the North American Bitcoin Conference (TNABC) in January. It was at TNABC one year ago that we announced the launch of the Swarm as the first live security token platform, so it was the perfect stage to one year later to share what we’ve learned and announce our move to free tokenization. Philipp Pieper gave a talk on what to expect for digital securities in 2019: reduced and eliminated barriers to entry, and streamlined paths to liquidity and compliance. With free tokenization and market access protocol, Swarm has focused on much needed infrastructure and invited others in the space to come build with us and grow together. To this end, we celebrate the 11 partners and projects already building on top of our infrastructure. Thanks to the conversations at TNABC, we will soon be sharing about a number of additional collaborators building on Swarm.
Watch interviews with the Swarm team from TNABC Miami 2019:
Hack Crypto interviews Swarm’s Alexander Lieders: Why Swarm is Using Masternodes for an 18 Trillion Dollar Market (5 min)
Bitcoin Brandon interviews Swarm COO Chris Eberle: Swarm at BTC Miami (4 min)
The Crypto Show’s 300th Episode features Swarm CEO Philipp Pieper at the 13:00 mark
For more Swarm reflections on TNABC 2019, read the article: “Tourist season is over,” says Chris Eberle, COO of Swarm. A roundup of thoughts on the cryptocurrency conference landscape
SWARM STAFF PICKS
Spotted by Philipp Pieper: Can digital securities fund an $18 trillion infrastructure gap?
This article on the World Economic Forum’s website triggered Swarm CEO Philipp Pieper’s particular interest. It is written by Peter Lyons, Chief Innovation Officer at Atomic Capital, who calls for a concerted and collaborative effort by public and stakeholders to build the next generation of capital markets from the ground up. He claims that a much higher allocation of global savings held by institutional and private investors will be needed to meet the exploding demand for new infrastructure to accommodate the growing number of city-dwellers. Peter believes that distributed ledger technology promises access to much wider sources of capital.
Read Peter Lyons’ article
Spotted by Philipp Pieper: Securitize to join IBM’s Blockchain Accelerator to modernize $82T corporate debt market
Considering it yet another sign that the FinTech industry is rapidly maturing, Swarm’s CEO was pleased to read the Forbes article about Securitize joining the IBM Blockchain Accelerator program. Securitize is a compliance platform and protocol for digitizing securities on the blockchain. The objective is to build the world’s first debt issuance platform with blockchain technology in 2019. With the use of Securitize’s Digital Securities (DS) protocol, it’s aiming to provide automated compliance to a private share that can then be traded. This DS protocol also delivers instant settlement when an investor purchases a fraction of the security. With the aid of the blockchain, the platform is hoping to deliver a modern solution for the finance industry.
Spotted by Sam Stone: Security Token Group in Telegram
Sam finds this group super interesting to follow. Industry thought leaders, Swarm community members and even our own Alexander (Sasha) Lieders actively participate in informative and sometimes heated discussions about security tokens.
View and join the Security Token Group in Telegram @SecTokenAcademy
View and join Swarm in Telegram @Swarm
Spotted by Chris Eberle: Off the Chain newsletter
The Off the Chain newsletter has become Chris Eberle’s go-to source, to stay on top of the news about crypto and digital securities. This daily newsletter — published by Anthony “Pomp” Pompliano — includes Pomp’s personal analysis of recent news, including industry trends, summaries of private conversations with crypto insiders, undiscovered companies, and areas of interest for investors of all types. Whether you manage billions of dollars of permanent capital or your personal account, this information will better prepare you for investing in the ever-changing world of crypto. The subscription will cost you $10 per month. Chris Eberle comments: “Easily worth it to get this content in your inbox every day.”
More about the subscription here: Off the Chain Newsletter
Spotted by Peg Samuel: 5 Things I Wish Marie Kondo Would ‘Declutter’ from the Crypto Industry
Swarm’s Peg Samuel instantly recognized the wisdom in Wess Messamore’s article on CCN, a site for Cryptocurrency News and Market Updates. Following Netflix’ home declutter-guru Marie Kondo’s example, Wess urges the crypto enthusiasts to clear out the clutter in the crypto industry. He’s offering a 5 step plan: 1. Get rid of fake coins. 2. Tone down the tribalism. 3. Cut the hype. 4. Stop reinventing the wheel. 5. Keep the big picture in mind. Peg’s comment: “AMEN”.
Read the article 5 Things I Wish Marie Kondo Would ‘Declutter’ from the Crypto Industry
Questions? Contact us at swarm@swarm.fund, in Telegram 24/7, or via the Intercom Support box on the Invest platform.
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