While the true identity of bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, remains a mystery, it seems like one of the early pioneers of the digital currency, who is one of the few people suspected to be Satoshi in the past, is raising money to start a financial company based on bitcoin.
According to recent reports, it seems like Nick Szabo, who also put in quite a lot of work on an early bitcoin prototype known by the name of DigiCash, wants to raise a total of $3 million for his new business.
At this moment in time, Szabo is known within the community, as the father of smart contracts. For those who do not know, these are blockchain-based agreements that are programmed in such a way to execute automatically. During the last couple of months, this technology has attracted the attention of large financial companies, such as Barclays, JPMorgan, UBS, but also the altcoin project, Ethereum.
The company’s description included in the pitch deck for the fundraising campaign claims that the startup will focus mostly on using smart contracts for the creation of financial products which mimic traditional assets, such as commodities, bonds and funds. The idea is to allow buyers to purchase blockchain assets of all types, using bitcoin. The deck also talks about the company’s ambitious business plan- which is to manage roughly $20 billion worth of assets by 2021.
So far, sources indicate that a total of $1 million was already raised during the firm’s first seed round, committed by a China-based venture capital firm that focuses on all sorts of blockchain investments. While the startup’s plans are not impossible, a lot of financial effort would be required to reach their goal within the short deadline.
At this moment in time, the name of the startup, alongside with other financial details are unknown. However, as the funding seed rounds continue, chances are that the media will hear a lot more about Szabo’s new business venture. It is however known that the company plans to focus on emerging markets, especially on the Latin American ones, as there’s a need of stable investment assets that needs to be satisfied in the region.
For those that do not know, during the last couple of years, Szabo has often been accused of having invented bitcoin. In fact, there have been numerous media papers pointing fingers towards him and showcasing what seems as proof. However, Szabo always denied the allegations.
Based on everything that has been outlined so far, what do you personally think about Nick Szabo’s business venture? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.