Eastern Caribbean Stock Exchange to Trial Tokenized Security Offerings

The Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange (ESCE) plans to partner with Canadian-based digital asset marketplace provider Blockstation to pilot security token offerings (STOs), according to a Letter-of-Intent published on March 10.

Blockstation is slated to provide a platform for listing, trading, clearing, settlement and the compliant tokenization of digital assets.

The ECSE was the first regional securities market and stock exchange in the western hemisphere and was established by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB).

The ECCB administers the eight members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States — Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Digital assets traded on the ESCE to be fully insured

The planned partnership will see the development a portal for issuers to manage disclosure documentation for upcoming STOs, in addition to security tools designed to assist regulators to track the circulation of digital assets. Full insurance coverage will be provided for all digital assets traded on Blockstation’s platform.

Trevor Blake, the managing director of the ECSE, stated: "The ECSE is proud to take a leading role in increasing access to and participation in our securities market through digital assets."

The Blockstation platform will support Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) trading and will be open to international traders.

Blockstation launches digital asset platform with Jamaica Stock Exchange

Discussion between Blockstation and the ECSE started in late-2018 following trials of Blockstation’s digital asset platform with the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) and a planned pilot with the Barbados Stock Exchange.

Last month, JSE and Blockstation announced the official launch of the platform. The stock exchange is currently reviewing applications for five companies seeking to launch digital securities offerings.

ECCB plans 2020 roll-out for blockchain currency

The Eastern Caribbean States have sought to embrace distributed ledger technology, with the ECCB hoping to issue the world’s first central bank digital later this year.

After the year-long trial that began during March 2019, the project will transition to a six-month rollout across the Eastern Caribbean region.