Two major technology companies—Siemens and Samsung—have made significant strides in the crypto sector, each advancing their involvement in different ways.
Siemens issues €300 million digital bond.
German technology giant Siemens launched its second digital bond, valued at €300 million, on a public blockchain, according to a Sept. 4 statement.
The bond, set to mature in one year, was settled using SWIAT’s private permissioned blockchain and leveraged the Bundesbank’s Trigger Solution. DekaBank acted as the bond registrar, while BayernLB, DZ BANK, Helaba, and LBBW participated as investors. Deutsche Bank facilitated the settlement in central bank money.
Siemens stated that the transaction was completed in a “fully automated manner, within minutes, and in central bank money.” It also added that the bond was issued under Germany’s Electronic Securities Act, which became effective in 2021. This law allows for the issuance of securities in electronic form, eliminating the need for physical certificates.
Meanwhile, the firm also noted that its new digital bond also supports the European Central Bank (ECB) tests of distributed ledger technology (DLT) for settling securities with central bank money.
This bond issuance follows Siemens’ debut of a €60 million digital bond in February 2023. Ralf P. Thomas, Chief Financial Officer of Siemens AG, stated:
“By issuing another digital bond, we are demonstrating once again our spirit of innovation and underscoring our aim to continuously drive digital solutions for the financial markets.”
Samsung invests in Web3 startup Startale Labs
Samsung Next, the venture capital arm of South Korean tech giant Samsung, has invested an undisclosed amount in Singapore-based Startale Labs as part of the Soneium Spark program, according to a Sept. 4 blog post statement from Samsung Next investor John Yim.
Yim explained that the firm invested in Startale Labs because they provide essential tools and infrastructure—such as Astar Network, Soneium, and Startale Cloud Services—that simplify developing and deploying decentralized applications (dApps) and smart contracts.
He furthered that Startale Labs’ solutions reduce barriers like high entry costs, lack of interoperability, and technical complexity, making Web3 technologies more accessible and scalable for developers and businesses.
Sota Watanabe, Startale Labs founder, stated that his firm’s strategy was “to first secure distribution channels and engage with people beyond Web3 space.” He added:
“We understand the existing problems and then explore how Web3 can address them. All technical solutions should be driven by the problems, not by the tech itself.”
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