Digital Securities
Sumner Group Secures $20 Million in Seed Funding
This week, the Singapore-based investment firm the Sumner Group secured $20 million in seed funding from a combination of Middle Eastern investors. The funds will go towards furthering the firm's Singapore-based subsidiary's, Sumner Global's portfolio. The move signals increased blockchain interest from Middle Eastern financiers.
Sumner Global will offer their SGHX security token via an STO scheduled for later this year. The funds raised are to go towards Sumner's first major UAE acquisition. Speaking on the campaign, CEO and chairmen David Sumner explained how successfully completing the first stage of seed funding enables the platform to execute its growth strategy globally.
$100 Million Goal
Sumner Global seeks to raise $100 million in total during its fundraising campaign. The remaining $80 million will come through a combination of private sales. Additionally, the firm plans to list SGHX tokens on numerous exchanges. Lastly, Sumner Global will host a public STO to complete its fundraising goals. This strategy is common in the market.
BLUEROCK
Both Bluerock Capital and Bluestone Capital pledged $10 million towards the project this week. These firms specialize in investment sponsorship. According to recent reports, Bluerock Capital successfully raised $120 million for various investments in January 2019. Bluestone is a subsidiary of Bluerock Capital.
Middle East Crypto
Analysts continue to monitor developments at Sumner Global as it is one of the first, and by far, the largest security token project currently in the works in the UAE. The middle east continues to show strong support for blockchain technology. Countries such as Dubai hold strong influence in the traditional markets and government officials have taken steps to promote further blockchain integration in the region.
Security Tokens
Sumner described how SGHX tokens will have compliance regulations integrated directly into the token's smart contract. The entire STO will be verified as fully compliant from the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Singapore is one of the most pro-crypto countries in Asia.
Investors will gain access to a “diversified portfolio of natural resources, building materials, tokenized securities, and healthcare recruitment firms according to the firms CEO. Security tokens enable more liquidity in the market place. This added liquidity is attained by tokenizing items that were once nonliquidable such as personal equity.
Far from an ICO
One of the main reasons for this project's ongoing success is the integration of security tokens. In the past, local regulators frowned on ICOs. Many saw this fundraising strategy as unregulated. The advent of security tokens allows governments to back blockchain projects with confidence.
Discussing the main differences, Sumner called STOs a “far cry from ICOs.” He explained how SGHX tokens are backed by a combination of both public and private companies. These asset-backed tokens are considered the natural evolution of cryptocurrencies by many.
Middle East Crypto
You can expect to see more investment capital flowing from these oil-rich regions in the near future. Analysts have touted the entrance of traditional investment capital into the cryptomarket as one of the main requirements for large scale adoption. Now, Investors have a more secure option to pursue.