Wave Financial Makes First 1000 Barrel Purchase for ‘Kentucky Whisky 2020 Digital Fund’

Tokenization is beginning to attract increased attention from investors with this past week bringing multiple examples of important markers being met.  First, INX met its minimum threshold for token distribution, with $7.5M USD raised.  Second, Wave Financial completed its first purchase of bourbon/whiskey for tokenization through its Kentucky Whisky 2020 Digital Fund.

Whisky – A Different Approach

What is intriguing about these events is the underlying assets.  To date, the vast majority of tokenization efforts have surrounded real estate.  In this instance, however, the underlying assets are a trading platform and Kentucky Bourbon/Whisky.

Although investors have taken an interest in alternative assets such as wine and art for decades, the fund by Wave Financial represents one of the first efforts to tokenize an asset such as bourbon/whisky.

“For investors to gain exposure to real assets that have impressive investment fundamentals such as whiskey is very difficult, but now it is possible via our fund. Following the launch in March we are delighted to have completed our first tranche time sensitive capital raise and purchased 1,000 barrels of physical premium Kentucky bourbon whiskey on behalf of our investors” – Benjamin Tsai, President and Managing Partner of Wave Financial

Other examples of niche tokenization efforts include:

CurioInvest – Fractional investing in rare automobiles

TheArtToken – Fractional investing in fine art

Progress Made

Although reaching this first marker is an important moment for Wave Financial, it is just the first on a long road.  With Wave Financial expecting to tokenize between 10,000-20,000 bottles, this current crop of 1000 only represents 5-10% of its goal.

“With our unique access to Wilderness Trail’s whiskey production capacity for this year remaining open, we are in a great position to continue the capital raise for the fund.” – David Seimer, CEO of Wave Financial

If Wave Financial is able to reach its end goal, this would represent the tokenization of an entire years-worth of bourbon/whisky from manufacturing partner, Wilderness Trail Distillery.

A Full Set of Macallan Whisky

For those wondering if Bourbon/Whisky can indeed represent a good investment, look no further than Macallan.

Matthew Robson, 28, was the recipient of one bottle of Macallan single malt scotch whisky on his birthday, for 18 consecutive years.  He recently made the decision to sell this collection, which was left untouched over time.  This decision resulted in a sale, bringing in $56,000 USD.

While not an example of tokenization, the appreciation in the Macallan Whisky collection is exactly what investors are after.  Providing the whisky is properly cared for, it is a product that will not deteriorate over time, and is only produced in limited runs.  Furthermore, there will always be a consumer demand – simply put, people like to drink.  For each of these reasons, Wave’s Kentucky Whisky 2020 Digital Fund may just go on to prove quite successful for investors thinking outside of the box.

Speaking with Benjamin

When the Kentucky Whisky 2020 Digital Fund was first announced, we were fortunate to have completed an exclusive interview with one of its fund managers – Benjamin Tsai.

As the President and Managing Partner of Wave Financial, Benjamin Tsai was able to provide unique insights into the fund, Wave Financial, and the digital securities sector at large.

To learn more about each, make sure to peruse this discussion HERE.

Wave Financial

Founded in 2018, Wave Financial is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.  As a Registered Investment Advisor with the SEC, Wave Financial is able to offer investors opportunities such as the fund described here today.  In addition, Wave Financial offers various consultation and treasury management services to its clients.

CEO, Dave Siemer, currently oversees company operations.