SE Digital assists companies mobilise funds via Digital Token Offering
The company, a subsidiary of Seamico Securities Plc, started operation on October 8, 2019. Jesadavat Priebjrivat, the company’s CEO, said SE Digital is considered a primary market participant and takes the roles of financial adviser and underwriter in digital token offering.
ICO portal requires digital token issuers undergoing a due diligence process comprising KYC, CDD, AML, and investor suitability process and ensure that mandatory requirements imposed under SEC are met with high quality standards, eg preparation of White Paper, structure asset classes and returns, assessment of taxation and accounting, identify targeted investors, prospectus filing process, regulatory approval, offering, and monitoring process.
The promotion of digital token offering would facilitate both issuers and investors access the different purposes of investment token, security token, utility token, reward token, currency token at their respective risk appetites. SE Digital has collaborated with several local partners, regulators, and prominent organisation. such as Tezos, a leading technology developer of base blockchain and token infrastructures.
According to Kullarat Phongsathaporn of Baker McKenzie, this regulated ICO for digital token offering will partially safeguard the investors’ rights since SEC has laid down the guidelines in line with the Securities Act if the underlying features of digital token are securities type. Interested issuers should consult with ICO Portal to deliver proper filing and comply with the stipulated requirements.
Stephen Ng, SE Digital’s Chief Marketing Officer, said that digital asset ecosystem comprising primary and secondary markets would definitely drive the capital market in the long run and become new fundraising opportunities as per token issuers’ perspectives while following the regulations of SEC and also investors’ choice of investments in diverse dimensions.
In Thailand, there are two other authorised ICO portal players: Longroot (Thailand) Co Ltd and T-Box (Thailand) Co Ltd.
Pinpraaj Chakkaphak, CEO of ERX Co Ltd (ERX), has filed application for the new Digital Assets Exchange Licence with SEC for the new trading venue by Elevated Returns, the strategic investor of ZMICO. ERX will be an alternate secondary market for these digital tokens exchange. He also said that it is a good opportunity for this new innovation in view of immutability of blockchain technology via digitised smart contract which creates transparency and security to all parties with the issuers and investors having diverse choices of funding, financing, and investments with stipulated terms & conditions embedded in the smart contract, more liquidity, flexible 24-hour services, minimum dilution effect, lower funding cost, ability to structure and ring fence specific assets or projects and fractionisation, and well-managed risk-return appetites.
Different categories of investors in Thailand can invest in these digital tokens with retail investors allowed not more than Bt300,000 while there is no limit for institutional investors, ultra-high net worth individuals, venture capital and private equity funds.
However, we need to be aware of the restrictions of governing laws and the highly competitive markets in the future which might become key obstacles of the digital economy.
Thailand Digital Assets Forum 2019 is arranged to promote digital asset ecosystem in Thailand and how these new players will change the world of traditional financing and investing. Digitalisation of the capital market is one of Thai government’s agendas in driving Thailand’s 4.0 Digital Economy and we are heading towards the major transformation.
Tokenization of securities and other related investment assets with advanced technology of blockchain are being developed and pushed to cope with market demand and modernized into the digital economy.
Digital token, one of digital assets used as fund-raising instruments and medium of exchange and are widely exchanged or traded on exchanges built on an electronic system or network. It is created for the purpose of specifying the rights of a person to participate in an investment in any project or business, or to acquire specific goods, services or other rights under an agreement between the issuer and the investor/holder.
Thailand has become one of the first among Asean countries on the verge of offering regulated digital tokens governed by the Royal Decree on the Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561.
Guidelines in relation to ICO includes but not limited to the followings:
– Issuer must be Company Limited, Public Company
– Issuer must be approved by SEC
– Traded via ICO Portal which approved by SEC
– Prospectus
– Receive digital tokens from approved Digital Asset Business
– Investors’ qualifications and investment value in line with requirement.
