Invitation to join the Gibraltar Stock Exchange's Blockchain Innovation Centre


18 Sep 2017

The Gibraltar Stock Exchange (GSX) has created the Blockchain Innovation Centre (BIC) as part of its ongoing drive to embrace newest technologies and combine them with the best practices from the GSX’s traditional regulated domain.

The BIC will launch an initiative to develop protocols on Blockchain technology and welcomes all proposals and proofs of concepts (PoC). The BIC will fund, manage, and develop the accepted PoCs and seek to implement them within the GSX Group ecosystem. The BIC will also be a forum for high level discussions, forging cooperative partnerships, and building consensus, with the ultimate purpose of driving forward technological innovation.

The BIC will also be collaborating with other blockchain friendly jurisdictions to promote wider applications amongst leading nations and will be hosting annual BIC events, panels, and competitions.

The GSX has established a well-earned reputation as a great supporter of the crypto revolution. In 2016 it admitted the world’s first regulated bitcoin product to listing on a stock exchange and the BIC is another step toward completing the “ICO to IPO” pathway that the Gibraltar Stock Exchange is building to provide easier financing for companies from the smallest start-up, to emerging SME, to well-established institution.

Managing Director of the Gibraltar Stock Exchange, Nick Cowan, said:

“Technology is changing many existing paradigms. It is certainly challenging existing market infrastructure that looks increasingly less fit for purpose in the 24-hour, interconnected, instantaneous world of the internet. The GSX, as a legacy-free exchange, is able to adopt the best of today’s technology. Many companies from a range of industries share the same potential and the BIC should be a place where they can complement each other’s strengths.”

Joey Garcia, fintech partner at ISOLAS commented:

“There is significant momentum in this space, and Gibraltar needs projects like the BIC to keep at the front end of international development, and to incubate and accelerate the right initiatives for the jurisdiction.”

The Gibraltar Stock Exchange is already in preliminary discussions with a number of prospective partners, including universities, technology companies, law firms, asset managers, other stock exchanges, and a number of other parties.

If you are interested in joining the BIC, please contact the GSX at [email protected] with your proposal or proof of concept.

 

 

Notes for Editors

About the GSX Group

The GSX Group owns GSX Limited which operates the Gibraltar Stock Exchange, one of the world’s newest regulated stock exchanges. GSX operates two markets, a regulated Market (the “Main Market”) and an exchange-regulated Market (the “Global Market”). It has established a reputation as a robust yet fast to market regulated platform for a variety of capital market products and is expanding to leverage Gibraltar’s proposed Distributed Ledger Technology regulatory framework.

About Gibraltar’s DLT Regulatory Framework

GSX’s initiative follows the Government of Gibraltar’s announcement of a public consultation paper   proposing a Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) regulatory framework in May 2017. The regulations are expected to be operational no later than 1st January 2018. They will provide an efficient, safe, and innovative regulatory framework to encourage Gibraltar's economic development while providing safeguards for consumers and protecting the jurisdiction's reputation and integrity.

The DLT Regulatory Framework positions Gibraltar as a jurisdiction which facilitates innovation whilst ensuring it continues to meet its regulatory and strategic objectives. It accommodates the modern need for speedy interaction with regulators in this fast moving area of business without compromising on robustness.

The regulations will apply to activities not subject to regulation under another framework and to firms (“DLT firms”) that use DLT for the transmission or storage of value belonging to others.

Firms and activities that are subject to another regulatory framework will continue to be regulated under that framework. The proposed role of the GFSC is to authorise and supervise DLT firms.

About Isolas

ISOLAS LLP, is Gibraltar’s longest established law firm (1892).

Joey Garcia is the Financial Services/Fintech Partner who represents ISOLAS and also co-chairs the Gibraltar Government working group on digital currencies and distributed ledger technology. He has been involved in the development of the policy and framework in respect of Gibraltar’s position on digital currencies and distributed ledger technology. He has advised a significant number of businesses in this space including Xapo in their regulatory applications in Gibraltar, as well as Gnosis and a number of other Gibraltar based token sales and regularly deals with the cross over from the blockchain start ups into the financial services and DLT regulatory space.

He is also one of the thought leaders involved with the Fintech think tank established by the firm, thinkFintech.gi

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