Almond launches one of the first retail STOs out of UK

London. 13th February 2019 – Environmental impact platform Almond today announced it is working with a new form of digital crowdfunding to take the business to the next level. New investors are being offered digital assets in the form of an FCA-regulated Security Token Offering (STO).

Almond is a new economic model and user application that incentivises consumers to buy sustainable products, offers transparency around the supply chain and helps responsible brands grow their business. The platform enables consumers to unlock cash rewards for buying items that meet minimum environmental and social standards. They can do this by scanning codes hidden on accredited products using the free Almond app. Scanning these codes also gives consumers access to detailed supply chain and product information whilst rewarding them with ‘Almond Coins’ that they can then redeem for cash or periodically convert into ‘Almond security tokens’ (thereby investing into the ecosystem).

The Almond platform helps build trust between brands and consumers through product transparency; rewarding consumer loyalty and providing brands with valuable, anonymised ‘point of consumption’ data. The ‘crowdfunding’ launch will be carried out on TokenMarket’s STO platform which is currently under the FCA’s regulatory sandbox (cohort 4). The regulatory sandbox allows firms to test innovative financial products, services or business models in a live market environment while ensuring that appropriate protections are in place for investors and consumers alike.

Almond CEO, Oliver Bolton, says: “We’re excited to build out the Almond platform using the innovative STO vehicle. Almond’s mission is to incentivise consumers to buy sustainable products, help responsible brands grow and ultimately assist in the fight against climate change. We plan to use the funds we raise to build the platform further and enable more brands to come on board. We are proud to pioneer STO investments in the UK and I believe STOs will transform startup finance in 2019.”

Similar to traditional crowdfunding platforms like Crowdcube and Seedrs, Almond security tokens represent shares in the commercial company (Almond Impact). Security Tokens are digital representations of the same financial instruments which investors have been buying and selling for decades with the added benefits of digitisation (easier to manage), blockchain immutability (greater security), and faster-anticipated access to secondary resale markets (increased liquidity). They also qualify for EIS tax relief. Security tokens can also be underwritten by other assets such as property deeds, precious metals and art. 

Almond uses an innovative dual token model: ‘Almond Shares’ (ALMA), a security token for raising capital underwritten by shares in the limited company and ‘Almond Coins’ (ALMD), a stablecoin with monetary value, used to power the ecosystem and backed by fiat currency.

TokenMarket CEO, Ransu Salovaara, says: “We are delighted to welcome Almond as one of the first UK companies to launch their STO on the TokenMarket platform. We have been working hard with regulators to push for high standard STO practices going forward, we believe we can benchmark this as the gold standard.”