Sygnum says it is the first to tokenise its shares.

Sygnum, a major cryptocurrency bank based in Switzerland, has successfully tokenised its shares on a blockchain ahead of its planned IPO.

According to an official announcement on 14 December, the bank tokenised its shares on the Ethereum blockchain using a proprietary tokenisation platform called Desygnate.

The blockchain-based platform issues digital representations of shares and associated rights and obligations on a distributed ledger, offering an alternative to traditional capital raising options such as an IPO. Since the end of November 2020, the platform is expected to be fully compatible with Crypto Trader the new Swiss Distributed Ledger Technology Act, which will come into force in February 2021.

Mathias Imbach, co-founder of Sygnum and CEO at Desygnate, said Sygnum is the first bank in the world to tokenise its own shares:

„We are excited to be the first bank in the world to tokenise its shares. This is an important milestone and a step closer to our goal of creating more direct and efficient access to ownership and value. This includes new participation models for our clients and partners. This will ultimately provide liquidity for our loyal shareholders.“

Through this tokenisation, Sygnum aims to simplify a number of processes related to the company’s shares. Buyers, for example, need to inform Sygnum to manually update the shareholder register. This should become easier. Tokenisation reduces the administrative burden that arises from requirements in writing. This particularly relates to the transfer of shares between buyers and sellers.

Sygnum is currently looking at various strategies for a future IPO. A dual listing on the SIX Digital Exchange is also possible.

Sygnum is headquartered in Zurich and claims to be the first Swiss company to become a crypto bank. The bank has consistently launched new crypto services and was the first to issue a stablecoin, a digital franc.

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