Lenz & Staehelin teams up with leading actors from Switzerland's industry to create standards for issuing and trading securities using the blockchain technology

On 12 June 2017, the Capital Markets and Technology Association (CMTA), a new body formed by leading actors from Switzerland's financial, technological and legal sectors, announced that it had been established in Geneva to facilitate the use of the blockchain technology in financial markets.

Lenz & Staehelin is one of CMTA's founding members. Dr. Jacques Iffland, one of the firm's corporate partners, is chairing the association's executive committee, which is also composed of representatives of the Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Swissquote Bank SA and Temenos Group AG. Fedor Poskriakov, one of Lenz & Staehelin's banking partners, is acting as General Secretary. Ariel Ben Hattar, a member of Lenz & Staehelin's capital market practice, is the executive committee's Secretary and Rosie Valentine is the association's Treasurer.

Lenz & Staehelin is proud to cooperate with leading experts from the financial, technological and academic sectors on a project that has the potential to fundamentally change the manner in which capital markets operate and companies raise capital.