Geneva-based Private bank Cité Gestion is partnering with digital asset company Taurus to tokenize its shares in a first for Swiss private banking.
Swiss financial institution Cité Gestion is tokenizing its shares, making it the first private bank to issue shares as blockchain-based securities under Swiss law, according to a media release published Tuesday. Swiss fintechs and startups have already undertaken this pioneering effort.
Geneva-based Cité is working with digital asset firm Taurus to issue the tokenized shares, manage the smart contract and perform asset servicing of the securities.
CMTA Standards
The tokenization of the shares was done according to the standards of the Capital Markets and Technology Association (CMTA), a Swiss non-profit organization based in Geneva and backed by major players in the Swiss financial industry, including banks such as UBS and Pictet, along with stock exchange operator SIX. The association's goal is to promote the use of new technologies in traditional capital markets. The tokens are stored on the public blockchain Ethereum.
Pioneering Work
«Taurus and the application of the CMTA standards ensure that an adequate risk management framework is at the heart of the process,» said Cité Gestion deputy CEO Christophe Utelli.
By tokenizing its shares, it underscores how important it is for the company to be among the first to take advantage of the new opportunities offered by Swiss legislation on the digitization of securities, Utelli said.
Blockchain startup Taurus, also based in Geneva, was founded in 2018 and received a securities license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) last year to allow investors and banks to trade a range of assets, including tokenized securities.
To date, Taurus has participated in the tokenization of 15 companies, including equities, private debt, and the structured products of Swiss and European companies.
