Guide: How to start your Tokenize.it crowdinvesting campaign with GmbH tokens

For startups or investors who want to issue or buy company shares or profit shares, there are relatively few alternatives in Germany that are fast, easy, and completely digital.

Tokenize.it provides founders and investors with a streamlined, digital, and straightforward solution for crowdinvesting in Germany.

In this blog article, we explain how Tokenize.it makes this possible and how we use the innovative blockchain technology to offer you valuable advantages. 

What is crowdinvesting with GmbH tokens?

Tokenize.it combines crowdinvesting and Web3 - with the help of our platform, you, as a founder, can easily set up a crowdinvesting campaign and issue GmbH tokens to a wide range of investors.

The GmbH tokens represent profit participation rights in your company shares and put investors on an equal footing with shareholders.

Security through blockchain technology

We use the Gnosis blockchain (a Ethereum sidechain) to create your GmbH tokens. This ensures that the tokens, that represent your company’s shares, are unique and immutable on the Internet.

They can also be securely transferred via the Ethereum ecosystem, enabling a secondary market for the tokens. To ensure the compatibility of the tokens in the ecosystem, they are created according to the ERC-20-standard.

The tokens are created using smart contracts provided by Tokenize.it on the Gnosis blockchain. All smart contracts provided by us have been extensively audited by external auditors specialized in blockchain applications to ensure maximum security.

As a founder, you have full control over your crowdinvesting campaign. You decide how many tokens you want to create, and you hold them in your wallet, to which we have no access.

Legal framework for crowdinvesting with GmbH tokens

In addition to the technical implementation, the legal aspects of issuing tokens that represent participation rights in companies are also of interest.

After registering on our platform, we provide you, as a founder, with standardized investment contracts. The contracts have been created in cooperation with an established law firm specializing in blockchain law. With these contracts, you can secure the legal framework of the investment.

In addition, the law requires that GmbH tokens issued in the context of crowdinvestments are subject to a prospectus obligation in the form of a PRIIPs basic information sheet (BIB). Specifically, this means that you, as the founder and therefore the issuer of the GmbH token, must prepare a PRIIPs BIB according to the requirements of Bafin. Again, we will provide you with a template that matches the GmbH tokens you have created and that you can personalize for your startup in just a few steps.

However, we recommend that you discuss this personalization with a lawyer before you officially use your contracts. Tokenize.it does not provide legal advice.

Advantages of crowdinvesting with Tokenize.it

Our GmbH token offers you as a founder, but also as an investor, an uncomplicated, fast, and digital solution for crowdinvesting. Your advantages are summarized below:

• Tradability - The GmbH tokens can be easily transferred from wallet to wallet in the Ethereum ecosystem, enabling a secondary market and bringing liquidity benefits. In addition, you can use an allow list to determine who is authorized to send and receive your GmbH tokens.
• Security - Your GmbH tokens are unique and cannot be forged, providing a high level of security. You can manage and create them yourself at any time.
• Speed - Our technical and legal implementation allows you to quickly raise capital and invest in startups. Additionally, you eliminate the need to visit a notary.
• Sample contract and PRIIPs basic information sheet (BIB) - You can use our sample contract and a draft BIB to process your investments. We advise you to check all documents with legal advice.

How does crowdinvesting onboarding work?

For founders:

To use Tokenize.it and create your crowdinvesting campaign, you need to follow these steps:

1. Onboarding on our platform: First, you sign up on our platform and go through our KYC process ("Know-Your-Customer"). In this step, we make sure that you have provided all the necessary documents to identify yourself and your company so that you can set up your tokens in the next step.
2. Setting up the token contract & token launch: You now have access to our standardized draft contracts and the smart contracts for creating your tokens. You should check both carefully and seek advice from your legal or tax advisor if necessary. Then send us your completed contract. After our review, you can create your tokens on the Gnosis blockchain.
3. Create a crowdinvesting campaign:
4. In our dashboard, you have the option of creating your crowdinvesting campaign after successfully verifying your company and your data. You define the size of the campaign (max. investment amount), the minimum and maximum investment per investor and the price per token. You can also personalize your campaign with your corporate identity, a description and your logo. Plausibility check of your campaign and documents. The BIB and your other documents will now be checked by us and our liability umbrella for plausibility. If we have any questions, we will contact you directly.
5. ‍Share your campaign: After you have completed all the previous steps, you can share your campaign. A link is automatically generated that can be used universally by potential investors and leads to your campaign. When investors click on the link, they have the opportunity to register on our platform and invest in your startup. You can also embed the link on your website in the form of an "Invest-Now-Button" or share it on your social media accounts. ‍
6. Close deals: With our easy-to-use dashboard, you can keep track of all the investors who purchase your startup's tokens through Tokenize.it.

Congratulations, you have successfully launched your first crowdinvesting campaign using GmbH tokens and now have up to 12 months to collect investments with this campaign!

For investors:

To invest in a company with Tokenize.it and receive GmbH tokens, the following steps are necessary:

1. Access the crowdinvesting campaign: Click on the link to the crowdinvesting campaign provided by the company.
2. Take a look at the offer: You will receive access to the relevant company documents. This usually includes a pitch deck, investment contracts, and a PRIIPs basic information sheet (BIB), which details the terms, risks, and rewards of an investment.
3. Due Diligence & KYC: Before you can invest via Tokenize.it, you must go through a KYC process ("Know-Your-Customer"), including personal identification via Video-Ident. Details of your investment experience and financial situation are also requested. This is required by law to check whether the investment is suitable for you and the maximum amount of money you can invest. This due diligence is not investment advice, and the result does not indicate whether an investment is "suitable" for you or your investment objectives.
4. Accept offer: Once you have completed the due diligence and are satisfied with the offer, you can select the desired investment amount and legally accept the offer through Tokenize.it.
5. Transfer investment amount and receive tokens: Finally, you connect your wallet to our platform and either send the desired investment amount directly from your wallet or transfer the amount by normal bank transfer to a bank account set up for you. Once the investment amount has been received, you will automatically receive your GmbH tokens securely in your wallet.

Congratulations, you have completed your token-based investment through Tokenize.it!

Your tool for token-based crowdinvesting

If you are looking for an alternative that allows you to involve a large number of small investors in your startup quickly, easily, and digitally, then Tokenize.it is exactly the right choice for you.

Our platform combines crowdinvesting with the benefits of blockchain technology. Tokenize.it allows founders to easily launch crowdinvesting campaigns and issue GmbH tokens that are unique and secure on the Gnosis blockchain. In addition, we provide standardized contracts and a template for a PRIIPs basic information sheet for legal protection.

Do you have any further questions...?

Feel free to contact us for a non-binding consultation. We look forward to hearing from you!

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Ready to get started? This link will take you directly to the Tokenize.it platform.

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You can find more information about our products in our Documentation.