The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), the nonprofit organization supporting the development and growth of the Stellar network, welcomed the news that WisdomTree’s retail financial app, WisdomTree PrimeTM, is available in 41 states representing 75% of the U.S. population.
The Stellar network supports the tokenization of 13 digital funds and a Gold token which are available for transacting through WisdomTree Prime, a retail financial app that utilizes Stellar-enabled wallets. The app brings tokenization even closer to the center of the consumer’s financial life by combining saving, spending, and investing and enables the consumer to reap the benefits of a blockchain-native platform, including near-instant settlement time for some assets.
After research of tokenization platforms, WisdomTree selected the Stellar network as its blockchain of choice because of a number of factors, including Stellar’s asset controls, relatively low cost, and operational performance. Stellar is where blockchain meets the real world and WisdomTree’s selection of Stellar is helping take tokenization mainstream.
“We are really excited WisdomTree Prime is available in 41 states representing 75% of the U.S. population and that it is built on the Stellar network,” said Stellar Development Foundation CEO Denelle Dixon. “Trusted financial institutions like WisdomTree are choosing the Stellar network to tokenize real-world assets because it can provide unparalleled control with respect to regulated assets and access to a global ecosystem of businesses hosted on the network. The Stellar blockchain ensures that transfers are secure, auditable, and traded near-instantly twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.”
By issuing their funds on the Stellar network, WisdomTree gained a variety of operational and administrative benefits made possible by blockchain technology:
- Controls: Native asset controls on the Stellar network enables WisdomTree to customize its tokenized assets to meet their business needs.
- Security: The immutable nature of the Stellar blockchain seeks to ensure that transfers are secure and auditable.
- Distribution Channels – The Stellar network hosts a global ecosystem of businesses, including on and off-ramps and digital wallets, that WisdomTree could leverage to enhance the overall availability of its tokenized assets in the future .
By using this solution, powered by the Stellar network, WisdomTree’s customers can potentially gain a variety of benefits made possible by blockchain technology:
- On and Off-Ramps: Customers can near-instantly convert between a variety of tokenized assets and real-world fiat assets. This capability can offer users an on-ramp from traditional funding mechanisms into novel blockchain-powered financial services for spending, saving, and investing.
- Ownership: WisdomTree’s Gold token, for example, is backed 1:1 to physical gold, meaning customers can purchase gold tokens from the comfort of their own homes with each gold token representing an ownership interest in physical gold stored in a secure vault.