World Chess to launch digital coin
Investors can use coins to buy shares in the company
World Chess has announced plans to launch a digital token to raise funds before floating the company on London's junior stock market.
The company that runs the World Chess Championships said it aims to raise “low millions of euros” before embarking on a “hybrid initial public offering”.
The tokens can be bought by accredited investors in the US and the EU, who can than convert them into shares, or privately trade them.
Shares of World Chess are expected to be floated on London’s Alternative Investment Market next year.
The company’s chief executive and founder Ilya Merenzon said the tokens will use blockchain ledgers to simplify the fundraising process. World Chess has been working with Algorand, an open-source software and blockchain technology company, since July.
Merenzon said the “hybrid IPO” is a pioneering financial innovation that companies will use to raise funds in the future.
He added that the majority of the money would go towards developing an online championship platform as well as anti-cheating software for monitoring online matches.
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