Crowdfunding Giant Indiegogo Lists First Security Token ICO
Source: Shutterstock
Crowdfunding giant Indiegogo has announced that it will expand its nascent initial coin offering (ICO) listing service to include security tokens, and the first such offering is now live on its platform.
The first security token made available through Indiegogo’s ICO platform is that of St. Regis Aspen Resort, a luxury hotel nestled in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. The offering, which is restricted to accredited investors, will allow contributors to purchase Aspen Coins, which represent tokenized shares in a single-asset real estate investment trust (REIT) created exclusively for the purpose of holding the $18 million in St. Regis Aspen stock made available through the sale.
“Security token offerings are the investment tool of the future, a mechanism designed to store wealth by utilizing income-producing digital assets,” said Stephane de Baets, founder and president of Elevated Returns, the asset management firm that owns the resort. “By allowing access to investing in traditional assets like real estate, we are creating a new opportunity for investors to explore an ownership stake in something previously only accessible to private investors and high net worth individuals. Indiegogo is a well known and trusted name in alternative funding and cryptocurrency, making them an incredible partner for us to leverage their influence, experience and global audience.”
Qualified investors can contribute to the St. Regis Aspen ICO using USD, BTC, or ETH. Aspen Coins are structured as ERC-20 tokens, meaning that they can be held in any Ethereum wallet. However, due to federal securities regulations, they may only be traded through an SEC-registered alternative trading system (ATS) operated by Templum Markets LLC, the broker-dealer who is overseeing the ICO in partnership with Indiegogo..
Slava Rubin, co-founder of Indiegogo, said:
“We have always strived to foster innovation and provide our users access to some of the most novel and interesting products and ideas from around the world. With the blockchain revolution fully underway, we are excited about the world-changing impact and potential of security tokens. Our goal is to provide an access point to our growing network of millions of customers and the opportunity to own a fragmented interest in the St. Regis Aspen Resort.”
As CCN.com reported, Indiegogo had initially launched its ICO platform in Dec. 2017, and its first listed project, the Fan-Controlled Football League (FCFL) quickly reached its $5 million funding target. However, despite reporting a “deluge of interest” from companies seeking to launch their token sales through the service, Indiegogo did not list any more ICOs during the first two quarters of 2018.
Featured Image from Shutterstock
