Deutsche Börse Group, a Berlin based capital market and exchange operator has bought stake in blockchain-based liquidity provider HQLAx solutions. Per the press release on August 28, 2018, the German firm has made a “single-digit euro million amount” investment in HQLAx in exchange for a minority holding.
The transaction is speculated to foster the bond between the two firms, and increase market efficiency and liquidity in uncategorized securities lending market by making use of emerging technology like the blockchain.
Terms of the Deal
In addition to the holding purchased, Deutsche Borse Group also claimed two board seats at HQLAx. The representatives will be Philippe Seyll leading the firms global securities financing business, and Jens Hachmeister who spearheads the development of blockchain based initiatives across the group.
Hachmeister shared his thoughts on the deal stating that the collaboration will aid in developing a cohesive business partnership between the two firms. It is also a right step forward in value addition with regard to initiatives undertaken in the blockchain domain.
Guido Stroemer, CEO of HQLAx, commented,
“This investment represents a major milestone for HQLAx, and it is another example of Deutsche Börse Group’s strong commitment to our platform. We look forward to our journey into production.”
Deutsche Börse’s corporate venture capital division, DB1 Ventures will supervise the investment in HQLAx. As stated in the press release, this is the second instance when DB1 has opened its door to invest in a blockchain related venture.
Early this year in March, the two groups had entered into their first coalition by signing a Letter of Intent to foster a competitive securities lending solution using the R3 Corda blockchain.
Blockchain adoption inevitable?
Blockchain has steadily been making inroads into the European technology market since it came into prominence. As reported by Blockchainreporter on August 29, 2018, per a survery conducted by Deloitte, there’s a universal sentiment among industry leaders that blockchain breakout is “just around” the corner.
This sentiment can be cemented from the fact that major economies and super powers around the world have started adopting the cutting edge technology in their industry mechanism.
Even traditionally closed economies such as North Korea have opened their doors seeing the immense potential of DLT. Undoubtedly, future looks bright for blockchain.
