Today SBI Digital Asset Holdings (SBI DAH) announced a Japanese joint venture with Chiliz to bring its football club fan tokens to Japan. The tokens are known under the Socios fan engagement brand and include top soccer clubs such as Arsenal, AC Milan, Manchester City, FC Barcelona, Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain. Additionally, SBI DAH plans to operate a node on the Chiliz Chain. To date more than 2 million users have engaged with the Socios fan tokens.

While companies such as Sorare and Dapper Labs are focused on sports NFTs, fan tokens are not unique. They’re fungible. Some have compared them to tracking stocks. Hence, while Socios has inked fan engagement deals in the United States including with Major League Soccer and 13 NFL teams, we’re not aware of the issuance of any fan tokens stateside. Apart from the trading aspect, the tokens enable fan engagement in the form of voting, competitions, VIP experiences, merchandise and exclusive offers. 

On the topic of stockholders, in Japan private investors typically engage more with companies than in the West. That includes receiving discount coupons, gift cards, points and memberships. Hence, while fan tokens don’t represent any ownership interest in the clubs, they offer similar engagement opportunities. Shortly after Chiliz launched, a Japanese version emerged, FiNANCiE. It has various relationships with Japanese sports teams, including J-League soccer clubs. However, Chiliz provides the international exposure.

“At SBI DAH, we prioritize the utility and underlying value which technology  brings to communities. Technology is an enabler in the new world, and we are pleased to bring new experiences to the Japanese audience by working with strong players like Chiliz,” said Fernando Luis Vázquez Cao, CEO of SBI DAH. 

 

“The partnership between SBI DAH and Chiliz will bring together the best-in-class capabilities of both traditional finance and Web3, leveraging fintech innovations to transform the sports and entertainment experiences for communities.”

The Ethereum-compatible Chiliz blockchain used to be Proof of Authority, which equates to a public permissioned ledger. It recently migrated to a Proof of Staked Authority version and is signing up node operators, including Paris Saint Germain.

SBI DAH’s blockchain interests

Meanwhile, SBI DAH has numerous blockchain interests. They include a AsiaNext, SBI Digital Markets and SBI Zodia Custody. SBI DAH partnered with Switzerland’s SIX for AsiaNext, and Standard Chartered and Northern Trust for custody. Additionally, SBI DAH invested in Swiss digital asset bank Sygnum, Blockdaemon and the Tangem wallet. SBI Holdings has an even more extensive range of blockchain investments and activities.

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We are thrilled to announce that Hyegi Chung (https://www.linkedin.com/in/hyegichung/) has joined the advisory board of Lavita AI as our Industry Advisor. Hyegi brings a unique blend of experience from the intersection of healthcare and technology, underscored by an impressive academic background from Harvard University, Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Wharton School.

Hyegi joins Lavita AI with a rich background from Verily (formerly Google Life Sciences), where she serves as the Country Manager for Singapore and mentors at the Google for Startups Accelerator: Southeast Asia. At Verily, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., she plays a pivotal role in advancing technology and life sciences to deepen understanding of health and disease, aiming to enhance individual and community well-being. Her leadership exemplifies a strong commitment to leveraging technology for health outcomes.

Hyegi’s experience at Verily Life Sciences, with its close ties to Google and Alphabet Inc., provides her with a unique perspective on the intersection of technology and healthcare. Her insights will be instrumental in guiding Lavita AI’s strategic direction, helping us navigate the complexities of the healthcare technology market and ensuring our solutions meet the evolving needs of our users.

Please join us in warmly welcoming Hyegi Chung to the Lavita AI family. Her role as an Industry Advisor marks a significant step forward for our team, enhancing our strategic vision and operational excellence.

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Ether traders have stacked up their short positions over the last 24 hours, just as Grayscale Investments pulled its application for an Ethereum futures exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Ether is hovering close to a key support level at $3,010, having dropped by 1.85% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data.

However, liquidation maps show traders have more conviction that the price is going down in the near term — with $345 million in short positions set to liquidate if the price goes up by 3%.

On the other hand, a 3% drop to $2,920 would only wipe $237 million in long positions.

It comes after Grayscale’s May 7 decision to withdraw its Ether futures ETF application, just three weeks before the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was set to decide on it.

It also comes amid speculation on whether Ether could be classified as a security and the fate of spot Ether ETF applications later in May.

Despite optimism earlier in the year, analysts are becoming increasingly doubtful about the chances of the SEC approving a spot Ether ETF as the next May 23 deadline approaches.

The sentiment among the crypto community is similar. According to the New York-based crypto predictions platform Polymarket, 92% of participants believe the spot Ether ETFs will be denied.

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