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(Kitco News) - The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) has signed a strategic agreement with Fireblocks, an enterprise platform for managing digital asset operations, to help build out its offerings.
Through the partnership, TASE will utilize Fireblocks’ tech stack to offer “a comprehensive range of innovative and secure digital asset products and services, aligning with TASE's new strategic plan,” the press release said.
With the new integration, TASE will be able to offer regulated entities institutional-grade digital asset solutions, including crypto custody services.
This strategic partnership comes as governments and financial markets around the world work towards integrating digital assets and blockchain technology into market operations in an effort to keep pace with advancements in digitization.
“The partnership between TASE and Fireblocks represents a monumental leap forward in the global digital assets landscape,” said Orly Grinfeld, EVP Head of Clearing at TASE. “We are unwavering in our pursuit of revolutionizing the industry and the local capital market, and this collaboration epitomizes our dedication to delivering secure, regulated, and innovative digital asset solutions. By harnessing the power of Fireblocks' advanced technology, we are poised to lead the charge into a future where the possibilities for digital assets are boundless.”
The new collaboration comes on the heels of the successful completion of the Proof-of-Concept (PoC) phase for Project Eden, a blockchain-based digital bond system created as part of the Israeli government's efforts to modernize the country’s financial markets.
As part of the trial, TASE held a go-live event on May 31 that brought together prominent international and local banks, including Bank Discount, Bank HaPoalim, Bank Leumi, Bank Mizrahi, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, First International Bank, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, and Merrill Lynch.
During the go-live event, the MOF issued and minted the first “dummy digital governmental bond” on a blockchain-based platform as an ERC-1155 security token using a dedicated decentralized app (dApp) that was specifically developed for the PoC.
A digital ‘Payment Token’ representing one Israeli Shekel was also introduced as part of the Eden ecosystem. The payment token served as a fundamental component of the settlement process.
“With Project Eden, our work with TASE has been one of the most exciting and groundbreaking digital asset use cases to date,” said Michael Shaulov, co-founder and CEO of Fireblocks. “The digital asset products and services that TASE is exploring will no doubt play foundational roles in the future of Israel’s economy and Fireblocks is excited to have the opportunity to provide the right infrastructure support and international expertise to bring these offerings to market.”
TASE and Fireblocks are now focused on creating a secure, transparent, and regulated ecosystem through the convergence of innovative solutions, traditional finance, and a regulated framework.
“By combining TASE's experience and market presence with Fireblocks' state-of-the-art technology, this collaboration will also open new frontiers in tokenizing various assets, creating new markets, and presenting unparalleled opportunities for growth for both TASE and the local capital markets,” TASE said.
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Fireblocks has emerged as a key player in helping institutions build out their digital offerings in recent years. To date, the firm has helped over 50 major financial institutions with their digital asset platforms, including BNY Mellon, BNP Paribas, ANZ Bank, NAB, ABN AMRO, BTG Pactual, TASE, and SIX Digital Exchange.
With Fireblocks' assistance, these institutions have built new digital asset custody, trading, clearing, and settlement services, and tokenized financial products such as tokenized fiat, central bank digital currencies (CBDC), and carbon credits, among other offerings.
In June, the company announced that it added support for cloud service providers Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform, Alibaba Cloud, Thales and Securosus in an effort to create a better opportunity for banks and financial institutions to utilize Fireblocks' technology stack “to quickly bring their digital asset initiatives into production while meeting their risk, compliance, and regulatory requirements.”
“From the very beginning, the Fireblocks platform was created and designed to be business-first,” said Michael Shaulov, Co-founder and CEO of Fireblocks. “We understand the risk requirements in the bank at an architectural level and we have strategically developed components to make sure that our customers can get from proof-of-concept to production in the shortest timeframe possible.”
