Co-Creator Mark Elenowitz talks on the future of Upstream, the Stock Market, and more
By Fernanda De La Torre
This week, our Co-Founder Mark Elenowitz took part in interviews with Roger James Hamilton, the CEO of Genius Group, and AvidTrader. Mark was able to discuss the future of Upstream, how blockchain technology will impact the stock market, Upstream’s digital coupon strategy, short selling, as well as other topics in both interviews.
Key takeaways from the interviews
Upstream is actively bridging the web3 environment into the market and has positioned itself to be a pioneer in that space. We have identified problems that shareholders and companies have with the current market and are offering solutions.
In the past couple of years, we’ve witnessed apps like Robinhood emerge which have given Americans the ability to invest with ease directly from their phones. However, this is not the case for the rest of the world. Companies have been limited to marketing their securities to U.S. investors and although the U.S. capital market is the most liquid market in the world, it’s only just a fraction of the market capability. It can also be difficult for international investors to open accounts in the U.S. to purchase U.S. listed equities.
Upstream has been designed to be a global exchange for investors from all over the world to invest in companies that they otherwise could not invest in with ease. With a focus on investor diversity and cross-border price discovery, Upstream is shaping the future of the market, and it’s available to you today.
Upstream is unique because we have created the ability to use alternative asset classes like bitcoin and eth that can then be swapped into USDC and to be able to buy traditional equities. We’re able to do this because Upstream, a MERJ Exchange Market, is powered by Ethereum blockchain technology.
This gives investors protection and allows them to participate in a transparent and immutable manner because every trade is recorded. It also allows Upstream to be a T-0 instantaneous settlement, offering an atomic swap that allows transactions to settle immediately. Because of this we strongly believe that in the next 5 to 10 years markets around the world will be settled through the blockchain.
Upstream has no market makers, we are designed to allow individual investors to place their best bids and offers, have a transparent order book, and allow securities to avoid the market gyrations and manipulations that occur in other capital markets. We do not allow layering, spoofing, hypothecation, borrow or short selling and, other predatory practices.
Upstream uses technology to enhance regulation
Our marketplace is built with investor protection, transparency, and usability in mind. Upstream uses an asset held away model, which means that investors who open accounts with us are actually opening a wallet with biometric security, and their assets are held directly in the wallet. Every wallet is a segregated bank account and all cash is custodied at a U.S. bank which gives investors peace of mind.
Upstream’s Digital Coupon Strategy
Our Co-founder Mark covered our recent digital coupon strategy which we have already begun to launch with companies dual-listed on Upstream.
Upstream has designed a program that rewards shareholders for their loyalty and support of your public company. We have created ‘Redeemable NFTs’ as part of our suite of unique NFT (non-fungible token) integrations that work to usher in the next generation of shareholder, customer, and fan engagement. All shareholders of record will receive a dividend in the form of a digital coupon (NFT) that allows the holder to redeem the coupon for the issuers’ products, services, experiences, or events.
The digital coupons are awarded to all shareholders and deposited in the shareholder’s account on Upstream. The holder is free to redeem the coupon or trade the coupons with other Upstream traders who ultimately will redeem the coupon.
The benefits of the digital coupons:
- Increase corporate revenue potential by driving shareholders and other traders back to your locations
- Fans can trade digital coupons with other fans globally
- Increase fan engagement and revenue-driving shareholders
It doesn’t matter where the shareholders have their shares, they’re all treated as one class and are able to go on Upstream and claim their digital coupon which they then can redeem with the company for a product or service.
There are numerous instances of shareholders who buy a company’s stock but have no firsthand experience with its product or service. Our digital coupon allows shareholders to try the product or service and allows companies to convert investors into customers, increasing revenue and visibility for the company. It’s truly a reward system for everyone, the company, and the shareholder.
The Future is Upstream
The future is here now and Upstream is excited to be paving the way for blockchain technology to truly revolutionize the market. As Upstream continues to grow and take on more dual listings, it will level the playing field for the rest of the world.
Although we are a foreign market and don’t allow Americans to transact today, we’re in the process of working with several U.S. broker-dealers that will allow U.S. investors to be able to be introduced into our Market.
You can watch the full interview with Roger James Hamilton here, and the full AvidTrader interview here. To learn more about Upstream visit https://upstream.exchange/ or reach the team at hello@upstream.exchange.
Disclaimers:
This communication shall not constitute an offer to sell securities or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction where such offer or solicitation is not permitted.
Commemorative NFTs are for utility, collection, and display only.
Redeemable NFTs and Commemorative NFTs are not securities and may be bought and sold globally, including by U.S. and Canadian persons.
U.S. and Canadian persons are not permitted to purchase Upstream-listed securities but are permitted to sell securities they currently own, that have been listed on Upstream, for liquidation purposes only.
If funding Upstream with an ACH or wire bank payment, users must complete Upstream’s in-app KYC process to get their new, FDIC-insured, Upstream U.S. bank account details via email. Users may then initiate a funds-transfer from their bank or financial institution to this new U.S. Dollar bank account. If you haven’t completed KYC yet or didn’t select ‘Bank’ as the ‘Deposit From’ option when you completed the process initially, then please go through KYC again selecting the ‘Bank’ payment method. Users may complete the simple KYC process by tapping the settings icon and the KYC option inside the Upstream app.
Upstream is a MERJ Exchange market. MERJ Exchange is a licensed Securities Exchange, an affiliate of the World Federation of Exchanges, and a full member of ANNA. MERJ supports global issuers of traditional and digital securities through the entire asset life cycle from issuance to trading, clearing, settlement, and registry. It operates a fair and transparent marketplace in line with international best practices and principles of operations of financial markets. Upstream does not endorse or recommend any public or private securities bought or sold on its app. Upstream does not offer investment advice or recommendations of any kind. All services offered by Upstream are intended for self-directed clients who make their own investment decisions without aid or assistance from Upstream. All customers are subject to the rules and regulations of their jurisdiction. By accessing the site or app, you agreed to be bound by its terms of use and privacy policy. Company and security listings on Upstream are only suitable for investors who are familiar with and willing to accept the high risk associated with speculative investments, often in early and development stage companies. There can be no assurance the valuation of any particular company’s securities is accurate or in agreement with the market or industry comparative valuations. Investors must be able to afford market volatility and afford the loss of their investment. Companies listed on Upstream are subject to significant ongoing corporate obligations including, but not limited to disclosure, filings, and notification requirements, as well as compliance with applicable quantitative and qualitative listing standards.
Forward-Looking Statements:
This communication contains “forward-looking statements.” Such statements may be preceded by the words “intends,” “may,” “will,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “predicts,” “estimates,” “aims,” “believes,” “hopes,” “potential,” or similar words. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, are based on certain assumptions, and are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, and cannot be predicted or quantified, and, consequently, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks and uncertainties associated with (i) difficulties in obtaining financing on commercially reasonable terms; (ii) changes in the size and nature of our competition; (iii) loss of one or more key executives or brand ambassadors; and (iv) changes in legal or regulatory requirements in the markets in which we operate. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise its forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.