While the Russian government is struggling to wrap its head around cryptos and pass legislation to regulate the young but vibrant industry, businesses are taking things in stride and launching crypto projects that might change the way we deal with money.
Employees of Qiwi Blockchain Technologies (QBT), a subsidiary of Russia’s largest payment services provider, have launched an investment bank for digital assets. The company is registered within the Russian jurisdiction under the brand name HASH.
HASH is not legally affiliated with Qiwi but developed by employees of the company, QBT finance chief Jacob Barinskiy explained in an interview for Kommersant. He added that Qiwi’s CEO and principal shareholder, Sergey Solonin, might become a strategic investor in the project once its viability is proved.
HASH is based on a classic business model of investment banking with traditional investment services applied to virtual assets. The bank will engage in discovering, evaluating, and marketing quality projects.
The new venture will aim to create a viable financial model and develop strong tokenomics (how the token will work, why it is needed, and how people will use it.
"We help startups with fundraising and earn commission for attracting money to the project," Barinskiy said.
Currently, HASH is working with three projects, preparing them for initial coin offerings (ICOs). Once everything is set, the company will bring in international investment funds focused on digital assets. It collaborates with ten such funds, the largest of which has a market value of about $100 million. Apart from that, HASH will be launching an analytical department to research the real value of blockchain projects in a longer-term timeframe.
Few people - if any - truly understand the real value of a specific blockchain project, which discourages long-term investors and renders the market too speculative, the expert added.
Meanwhile, traditional investment bankers are cautiously optimistic about Qiwi's new business undertaking. VTB experts agree that blockchain technology is suitable both for corporate and investment banking, while interest in digital assets will grow when the regulatory environment becomes more mature. However, they believe that traditional tools for attracting capital may not suit the needs of the cryptocurrency market, which leans towards venture capital.
This article appeared first on Cryptovest
