Gibraltar Blockchain Exchange – A Home for Security Tokens?

The distributed ledger technology / blockchain industry is a forward thinking one.  With that in mind, it is unsurprising to find that many believe the next big wave of innovation will take shape in the form of tokenized securities.  With regulatory bodies enforcing their will upon many projects, and condemning poorly run ICO’s, this next step is crucial.  Rather than fighting the powers that be, the industry is adapting and evolving.

A Place to Call Home

While many believe that security tokens are the future of blockchain, they are still in the early phases of development.  Their acceptance is not nearly as widespread as utility tokens and cryptocurrencies at this point in time. A major hurdle to clear is, ‘where will they be traded?’

For the time being security tokens are relegated to being traded on decentralized exchanges (DEX).  While these types of exchanges have a very bright future ahead of them, they have not yet developed into a 100% safe and user friendly platform.

Enter Gibraltar.

Gibraltar Stock Exchange (GSX) and Security Tokens

Recognizing public interest in digital assets, the Gibraltar Stock Exchange has launched a series of platforms to fill this niche.  Operating under the GSX is the Gibraltar Blockchain Exchange (GBX).

In a recent interview with CryptoSlate.com, the GBX spoke about their newly released platforms – a digital asset exchange (GBX-DAX), and their token-sale platform (GBX-grid).

While currently offering a variety of cryptocurrencies, the exchange noted that they are looking to bring support for security tokens in the near future.  If they are able to achieve this, a major hurdle will have been cleared for securities finding a home.

A few thoughts from Lim

Speaking with CryptoSlate, Business Development Manager of GBX, Chuan Ji Lim stated, “Best practices and standards need to be established for the mainstream market to adopt tokens or digital assets to be a new asset-class. GBX, as the subsidiary of the EU-regulated Gibraltar Stock Exchange, aims to bring the traditional capital market best practices to the crypto world.”

Lim went on to elaborate on the listing process of security tokens by stating, “The launching of a regulated security token offering will take place using the GSX license, as GSX is itself already an EU-regulated stock exchange.”

A Friendly Welcome

Operating under the watchful eyes of the European Union, Gibraltar has historically been a difficult region for burgeoning technology to gain a foothold.  Surprisingly, Gibraltar has seen the potential benefits that blockchain affords, and has taken a welcoming stance to the technology.

Although not free to operate as they please, operations utilizing Distributed Ledger Technology were given clarity on the subject in early 2018.  As of January 1^st there was a release of regulatory framework regarding DLT.

Nations such as the United States are stuck in limbo, as the respective governments hum and haw over how to regulate digital assets.  By releasing this framework, companies have been able to get a head-start on the development of various services and platforms.