What is value? And how blockchain makes sharing it smarter

Circle, the blockchain unicorn breaking boundaries in the finance sector, is on a mission to enable people anywhere to create and share value.
How? With the tokenisation of everything.

Some qualifiers first. What are tokens? A utility token, such as bitcoin, is different from, say, a security token. Utility tokens represent the potential for future value (since digital marketplaces are still being built). By contrast, security tokens have real-world assets backing them up, such as equity in real estate. As a result, they have a tangible value – dollars, euros, pounds – separate from a cryptocurrency’s (crypto) worth. In other words, trading in security tokens is less of an abstract bet-hedging strategy than trading in utility tokens.

As fintech continues to accelerate at pace, tokens are emerging as an asset class of their own. They hold the potential to bring crypto to a deep bucket of investors: gaining real-world value from the digital assets in which they invest holds a heady allure.

“Imagine an Indian farmer wanting security for his land,” says Marieke Flament, Managing Director of Europe at Circle. “He will be able to sell a portion of it directly to consumers with digital wallets using dollars or euros, without any intermediary. On the one hand, the smart contract means the farmer will gain. On the other, it creates a new investment opportunity for consumers who want to participate.”
Now, extrapolate this scenario for billions of people across the globe. “We are right on the cusp of tokenisation anytime, anywhere being possible,” says Flament, a London Business School MBA graduate.

Blockchain is bringing value to everyone, including vulnerable people. For instance, Building Blocks, a programme started in 2017 to help the World Food Programme (WFP) distribute cash-for-food aid, has helped more than 500,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan. The refugee camp runs on blockchain. People shop at supermarkets without physical money. To pay, they look into a camera and an iris scanner connects to their WFP accounts. Previously, the humanitarian organisation had given aid directly to refugees but the payments cost millions of dollars in bank transaction fees: blockchain cut those fees by 98%.

For definitions of blockchain, smart contracts and crypto assets and securities, skip to the end.