Sygnum is the world’s first digital asset bank and a digital asset specialist with global reach. With Sygnum Bank AG’s Swiss banking licence, as well as Sygnum Pte Ltd’s capital markets services (CMS) licence in Singapore, Sygnum empowers institutional and private qualified investors, corporates, banks and other financial institutions to invest in the digital asset economy with complete trust.
Sygnum operates an independently controlled, scalable and future-proof regulated banking platform. Sygnum’s interdisciplinary team of banking, investment and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) experts is shaping the development of a trusted digital asset ecosystem. The company is founded on Swiss and Singapore heritage, and operates globally.
Thought leader
Fabian Dori is the Head of Asset Management at Sygnum. He joined Sygnum as Chief Information Officer, and served in that capacity until 1 October, 2020.
Before joining Sygnum, he held various executive positions at Notenstein La Roche Private Bank and 1741 Asset Management. Prior to that, he worked for Wegelin & Co. Private Bankers in numerous positions.
Fabian holds a Master of Arts in Quantitative Economics and Finance and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of St. Gallen.
How is DLT and Blockchain reshaping wealth and asset management? Where is the industry today and how do you foresee things changing in the future?
DLT & blockchain is expanding the universe of investment opportunities
One of the ways that DLT & blockchain has benefitted the financial industry is by expanding the universe of investment opportunities available and accessible to various type of investors, be that institutions, high net worth individuals or even retail investors.
There are two types of investment opportunities created by DLT & blockchain. The first is the introduction of a new asset class of protocol tokens – or cryptocurrencies – such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. These are tokens associated to a blockchain protocol, designed to provide both a medium for the transfer of value, as well as an economic incentive within the network. Ownership of these tokens offer investors a way to participate in the growth and development of a protocol, capturing the increase in value.
The second is the opportunity created through asset tokenization. With tokenization, all kinds of assets can be digitally represented on the blockchain, making them more widely accessible, affordable by fractional ownership, and easily tradeable. Investors can now profit from asset classes such as Venture Capital, Mid Cap, Real Estate, and Art & Collectibles, which were previously seen as hard-to-access in a direct and fractional manner.
Current macroeconomic environment is driving demand for alternative investments
Significant amounts of fiscal stimulus injected into economies globally this year has driven up asset prices and is fueling concerns over inflationary pressure. Investors are therefore searching for alternative investments that can provide returns on their capital. In this environment, both protocol tokens and asset tokens will help to fill this need by broadening the investment universe available to investors, allowing them to build more holistic, diversified, and resilient portfolios.
In particular, Bitcoin has received considerable attention as the new “digital gold”, providing an alternative investment option to hedge against inflationary pressure. This is because Bitcoin has certain characteristics such as scarcity, permanence, and authenticity, which make it a good store of value asset, like gold.
The investment landscape is shifting with the changes brought about by DLT & blockchain, and this will impact portfolio construction and diversification, not only for high net worth individuals. As protocol and asset tokens become more established, they will grow in importance for wealth managers and their clients in developing holistic investment portfolios – and we believe that with the current macroeconomic environment, this trend will only accelerate.
What solution(s) does your company offer that wealth management firms should consider?
At Sygnum, we offer a portfolio of regulated banking services which makes the universe of digital assets bankable, convenient, and trusted. Through our B2B banking services we also enable our partners to provide regulated digital asset products and services to their own clients.
For wealth managers, these product offerings can be leveraged to help especially their high net worth clients start building simple, diversified digital asset portfolios as a satellite to their core investment portfolio.
1. Direct access to leading protocol tokens such as Bitcoin and Ethereum
We offer custody, brokerage, and credit services for leading protocol tokens, enabling clients to invest directly into these tokens and control the level of exposure. This includes staking services for proof-ofstake tokens such as Tezos (and soon, Ethereum 2.0) providing yield generating opportunities.
2. An Index ETP which includes exposure to smaller, niche protocols
We developed the Sygnum Platform Winners Index which identifies on a dynamic basis the tokens of the most established, foundational protocols (besides Bitcoin and Ethereum including smaller ones such as EOS, Binance Chain, Cardano, etc.). This index has a corresponding ETP which is traded on the SIX exchange and provides a convenient, safe entry point to digital asset investing
3. An alpha-oriented Multi-Manager Fund
Sygnum’s Asset Management team has established a multi-manager fund which diversifies across bestin-class digital asset managers and strategies. This fund provides broader and lower correlated exposure to digital assets including value extracted from information asymmetries and market inefficiencies in the digital asset space.
4. Unique investment opportunities with Sygnum’s tokenization solution
With Sygnum’s newly launched end-to end tokenization solution, unique investment opportunities are created by connecting issuers and investors seamlessly in one platform. With Desygnate, a primary market issuance platform, asset classes such as Venture Capital, Mid Cap, Real Estate, and Art & Collectibles are made easily investible, and clients have the peace of mind that all assets and issuers have been vetted by Sygnum. In addition, these assets can be traded through SygnEx, a regulated secondary market for asset tokens.
In our product strategy we have considered the various aspects of a holistic digital asset portfolio which will create maximum value for clients. We will continue to roll out more offerings to enhance what we currently have, as well as expand the universe of protocol and asset tokens available on our platform. In this way, our wealth management partners have the tools they need to empower their own clients to invest in the emerging digital asset economy with complete trust.
ACCESS THE FULL WEALTHTECH VIEWS DLT & BLOCKCHAIN REPORT HERE
