Switzerland’s SIX Digital Exchange (SDX), working in partnership with F10 and digital share register Aequitec, announces the first-ever tokenisation of equity shares in a fully-regulated central securities depository (CSD) based on distributed ledger technology (DLT).
F10, a global fintech and insurtech innovation ecosystem, will issue its shares with the SDX CSD where shares are tokenised, while the share in registry services will be provided by Aequitec.
According to Swiss law, tokenised private shares are transferable in the form dematerialised intermediated securities on the SDX DLT platform.
Expected benefits are increased efficiency and greater liquidity for private markets. According to SDX, this enhances the share registry process for private companies by using blockchain technology, allowing a seamless user experience for issuers, investors and SDX member banks.
Commenting on the announcement, Massimo Butti, head of equity at SDX, says: “The issuance of F10 shares on SDX is the result of the cooperation with different market actors. It provides a scalable blueprint for other issuers and participants to issue digitised shares and affirms that our private issuance market is open for business”.
Christian Wilk, CEO of Aequitec, notes: “With the help of Aequitec’s interactive workflows for capital increases and annual shareholder meetings, F10 as equity issuer can further streamline the processes and strengthen corporate governance practices, resulting in higher ESG ratings and better access to equity funding”.
