ICHX Tech, a blockchain-based infrastructure company incubated by Singapore investment firm ICH Group, has announced that its capital markets platform, iSTOX, has been admitted into the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)’s FinTech Regulatory Sandbox.
Since May 1 2019, iSTOX has been operating within the sandbox environment, with a view to graduate from the sandbox and transition into full operation by early 2020.
After onboarding the first batch of issuers and investors, ICHX Tech anticipates the first issuance of digitized securities within the sandbox environment to take place by 4Q 2019, with the trading of these digitized securities on iSTOX to begin shortly after. iSTOX is working towards graduating from the sandbox by early 2020 as the first fully-regulated capital markets platform to allow issuers and investors to conduct the issuance and trading of digitized securities.
The MAS FinTech Regulatory Sandbox was launched to allow financial institutions and fintech start-ups to experiment with promising financial products or services within a well-defined space and duration. The sandbox provides a supportive environment for innovative fintech experimentation and contains the appropriate safeguards to contain the consequences of failure and maintain the overall soundness of the financial system.
iSTOX also announced the establishment of the iSTOX Legal Panel, comprising law firms Allen & Gledhill LLP, Baker McKenzie Wong & Leow, and Rajah & Tann, who may be engaged to provide top-tier legal advice to assist issuers on iSTOX’s digitized security structuring and issuance processes.
With iSTOX, any issuer, be it established companies, younger companies seeking growth capital, funds or even private asset owners may use digitized security offerings as a new mechanism to tap capital markets and receive investments for an idea or venture they believe in.
Darius Liu, chief strategy officer of ICHX Tech, says, “iSTOX is supportive of the goal to encourage more fintech innovation in Singapore. To this end, the iSTOX platform aims to extend the boundaries of capital markets as we know them today, benefitting Singapore’s own financial services ecosystem in the process. We will continue to work with the authorities and regulators to develop an environment for financial innovation and enhance Singapore’s global standing as a dynamic, well-regulated financial centre.”