Delaware advocates using blockchain to register company equity, blockchain equity applications may see a boom

From May 2 to 4, 2016, the Consensus 2016 was held in New York, USA. On the first day of the meeting, the Delaware Blockchain Initiative was established. Delaware Governor Jack Markell announced that Delaware would allow blockchain equity issuance and would formulate corresponding corporate regulations to protect it. He also announced that he had started cooperation with the technical team Symbiont to jointly develop the "Delaware Blockchain". It is expected that the initial results will be seen by this time next year, and the Symbiont team will also move to Delaware.

Compliance of blockchain-based company equity registration

Senior domestic legal professionals said:

“Delaware’s attitude is very important. Nearly 80% of U.S. companies are registered in Delaware. So if Delaware promotes the issuance of blockchain shares, it means that all U.S. companies will be significantly affected, which will greatly promote the application of blockchain technology.”

Since the 20th century, nearly 1 million corporate entities have been registered in Delaware. According to public data, nearly 60% of Fortune 500 companies were established in accordance with Delaware laws, and Delaware has the headquarters of more than half of all listed companies in the United States. Delaware is trying to use blockchain technology for company equity registration, which can reduce the cost of registering new companies and simplify cumbersome paper operation procedures.

Markell believes that the government should promote the development of this new type of legal share, which we call "distributed ledger shares."

In his speech he mentioned:

“Distributed ledger shares may enable instant clearing, instant settlement, and greatly improve efficiency and facilitate business transactions in Delaware. We can trace this project back to the 1990s, when Delaware legislators amended the law to absorb electronic data technology. Today, Delaware will also absorb distributed ledger technology and amend the law to adapt to new technologies.”

All blockchain equity registration protocols have the opportunity to be recognized

Symbiont, a technology startup, is a smart contract company dedicated to connecting emerging markets and Wall Street smart securities. Its technology can turn complex financial instruments into programmable contracts. The application of blockchain in the field of securities digitization has entered the practical application stage, led by Nasdaq's Linq. Nasdaq's Linq, a financial services and private equity management platform based on blockchain technology, announced the completion of its first blockchain-based transaction on December 30, 2015. Nasdaq executives are convinced that the high efficiency provided by blockchain technology will greatly enhance Linq's advantages as a private equity trading platform.

Da Hongfei, founder and CEO of Onchain, a Chinese blockchain company, also attended the meeting. Onchain developed the blockchain project Antminer, a blockchain for registering and trading various digital assets. He said,

Delaware's corporate law will recognize blockchain equity from a general technical perspective, but it is impossible to specify a specific blockchain project, so all blockchain protocols have the opportunity to be recognized. "We will make Xiaoyi a blockchain equity registration protocol recognized by Delaware," said Da Hongfei. "The field of asset digitization, especially equity digitization, will usher in rapid development, and we are on the fast track."

(For more details: Onchain CEO and Ant Financial team member Da Hongfei AMA: What happened at this year's consensus conference? Ant Financial is here, waiting for your questions!)

It is worth mentioning that this statement by the US state of Delaware will also attract more start-up companies to register in Delaware, increasing the attractiveness of Delaware and even the United States to outstanding start-ups.

The three-day consensus conference was themed "making blockchain real". From May 2 to 4, New York time, top blockchain startups, investment companies, celebrities from financial services institutions, and experts from industry policy organizations gathered at the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel to discuss the application of blockchain technology in the real world and how to mainstream these real-world applications and make them accepted by consumers and businesses.

Unfortunately, apart from the participation of Li Qiyuan, CEO of the Chinese exchange BTCC, in the special discussion on “Integration of Digital Asset Trading into Capitalist Markets”, there were no speakers from Chinese teams at this conference. We hope that in the near future, more Chinese blockchain teams will be able to step onto the international stage.