French specialized credit institution Societe Generale SFH issued a 100 million euro ($112 million) bond as a security token on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain. The company announced the development on its website on April 23. Societe Generale SFH — which is a subsidiary of one of Europe's largest financial services groups, Societe Generale Group — has rolled out its first pilot project developed in collaboration with Societe Generale FORGE. The latter is an internal startup launched through the Group’s intrapreneurial program, the Internal Startup Call. The transaction’s goal was to investigate a more efficient way for bond issuance, which would …

Afghanistan and Tunisia’s central banks are looking to issue a bitcoin (BTC) bond, Hong Kong-based news outlet Asia Times reports on April 17. Per the report, the governors of the two country’s central banks spoke at the annual Spring Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund in Washington between April 8 and 14. Afghanistan’s central bank governor Khalil Sediq allegedly told Asia Times that the institution is considering issuing a sovereign crypto bond to raise $5.8 billion. The funds would be used for private-sector investment in mining, energy and agriculture. Alongside …

The Gibraltar Stock Exchange (GSX) is launching listings of blockchain-powered securities on its practical listing venue GSX Global Market, the firm announced on April 9. Today, the GSX starts listing a number of new products known as digital, smart or tokenized securities such as corporate bonds, convertible bonds, asset-backed securities, derivative securities, open-ended funds and closed-ended funds, the announcement says. By applying distributed ledger technology (DLT), the GSX intends to enable greater liquidity pools and facilitate democratizing the capital markets, the firm noted in the press release. In contrast to the GSX Main Market, GSX Global Market provides a lighter …

Germany’s justice and finance ministries have proposed to launch a state-run register to boost the use of blockchain, Reuters reports on Friday, March 8. According to the Reuters, the seven-page initial guidelines offer to create a register to regulate the sector and protect investors from possible abuses. The document reportedly states that regulation in the sphere could contribute to the development of the technology behind cryptocurrencies, along with enhancing Germany’s position in financial markets. The guidelines also propose easing existing requirements, which assume that financial instruments must have tangible counterparts that can be purchased by investors. Reuters claims that current …

The London Stock Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has led a $20 million investment round in fintech startup Nivaura, Reuters reported on Feb. 27. The British blockchain startup is the developer of the world’s reportedly first crypto-denominated, blockchain-settled bond. According to Reuters, LSEG paid an undisclosed amount for a minority equity stake in Nivaura. The startup provides blockchain solutions that automate the issuance, clearing and settlement of financial instruments, including bond issuance and tokenized securities. Alongside LSEG, Banco Santander’s venture capital arm, Santander InnoVentures, was reportedly among the investors in Nivaura. LSEG’s head of international development, Nikhil Rathi, told Reuters that …

Citigroup and Nasdaq are among a group of firms investing $20 million dollars in Symbiont.io Inc, Bloomberg reports on Jan. 23. Other investors reportedly include Mike Novogratz’s crypto-focused merchant bank, Galaxy Digital Holdings. Symbiont’s blockchain and smart contract platform, Assembly, will be applied in capital markets. The offering purportedly allows financial institutions to share and verify data, and uses smart contracts to accelerate settlement times for syndicated loans and streamline mortgage bond markets. According to Bloomberg, Symbiont will use the funds to work on private equity, mortgages, data management, and syndicated loans. Nasdaq will also examine new opportunities to use …

Austria’s government is set to use the Ethereum (ETH) public blockchain to issue €1.15 billion ($1.35 billion) of government bonds in an auction next week, local news outlet Kleine Zeitung reports September 25. Oesterreichische Kontrollbank (OeKB) — one of Austria’s biggest banks with $26 billion in assets in 2017 — will reportedly operate the live blockchain notarization service. During the auction, scheduled for October 2, the bank will issue the bonds on behalf of the Austrian Treasury (OeBFA). Austria’s Finance Minister, Hartwig Löger, noted that the ministry considers blockchain tech “forms a focus on economic policy,” adding: “Through setting up …

The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has announced that it will delay its transition to use blockchain for equity transactions by six months, the Sydney Morning Herald reports September 4. As Cointelegraph has previously reported, the ASX has been working to implement blockchain as of December 2017 to replace its current system for processing equity transactions. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the decision to delay the move comes as the exchange plans to devote more time to user development and testing. The launch date for the switchover has now been moved from the fourth quarter of 2020 to March-April 2021 …

It’s been close to 10 years since Bitcoin came into existence, and in that time, major financial institutions have slowly come to grips with blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Some have taken to the industry quicker than others, and some have outright turned their backs on the thought of using or investing in cryptocurrencies. However, the technology underpinning these decentralized digital currencies has been a major focal point, mainly in terms of how it can be used by traditional banking and financial institutions. A number of big name financial companies have actively developed blockchain-based systems used for different operations. JPMorgan’s Quorum …

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), the largest bank in the country, has been mandated by the World Bank to arrange a bond issue exclusively on a blockchain, according to a press release Aug. 10. CBA will reportedly arrange the first bond globally to be “created, allocated, transferred, and managed using blockchain technology.” The Blockchain Offered New Debt Instrument (bond-i) will be issued and distributed on a blockchain platform under the operation of the World Bank in Washington, and CBA in Sydney. The two organizations are using a private Ethereum blockchain, but the CBA “remains open” to alternatives as “other blockchains …

The Thai Bond Market Association (TBMA) will deploy a blockchain-powered solution on its registrar service platform, local news agency Bangkok Post reports July 28. The new registrar service platform, which is scheduled to be introduced this year, intends to provide a faster bond certificate issuance and, in turn, boost the liquidity of the secondary market, according to TBMA president Tada Phutthitada. While market liquidity has been growing, the issuance of bond certificates still remains slow, which may cause serious limitations to the growth of corporate bonds in the secondary market. According to Mr. Tada, the platform will reduce the bond …

The bond markets are rattled and global yields are rising, signaling a possible reversal of an aging 33 year bull market in bonds that could have a major impact on all other global financial markets resulting in a reprice in asset classes across the board. The price of bonds has been falling in dramatic fashion and the reason for this has varied. Some speculate the bond markets smells economic growth picking up in the second half of 2015, while others believe inflation expectations are picking up. Bond market liquidity (or the lack thereof) has been identified by many market experts …