Emergent Technology Holdings LP and Asahi Refining announced today that Emergent has licensed to Asahi Refining its Responsible Gold™ supply chain application (Responsible Gold SCA), a blockchain-based technology that tracks gold provenance and movement along the supply chain. This month, Asahi Refining, a leading global precious metal refiner, will begin using the Responsible Gold SCA in its refining procedures. Emergent’s application uses blockchain technology to track gold through each stage of the supply chain – from mine, to refinery, to vault – to ensure gold is 100% responsibly sourced and conflict-free. Miners, refiners, and other supply chain participants use a mobile application to scan chips in tamper-proof seals; the scans record transfers of custody of responsibly sourced gold in real time on Emergent’s blockchain.
“Emergent’s solution is significant for the gold industry. End users want assurance that gold they are buying has not, at any point, contributed to unethical sourcing practices. Emergent’s technology plays a critical role in that assurance by helping provide greater transparency and traceability across the gold supply chain,” said Grant Angwin, Asahi Refining’s President and LBMA Vice Chairman. “We are thrilled to support innovation that helps move our industry forward.”
Asahi Refining joins other major gold industry leaders, including Yamana Gold and Valcambi SA, in adopting Emergent’s Responsible Gold SCA. The application uses distributed ledger technology to create a shared, immutable and irrefutable record of custody transfer among supply chain participants. “Emergent’s technology instills greater trust and visibility in the origin and ethical sourcing of gold. We are bringing together a community of responsible gold supply chain participants and welcome the addition of Asahi Refining,” said Matthew Keen, Emergent’s Managing Director, Responsible Gold Trading DMCC.
Emergent is also launching G-Coin™, a digital token backed by physical gold sourced from the Responsible Gold supply chain platform. The digital tokens represent 100% ownership of, and title to, vaulted, responsibly sourced gold. G-Coin tokens are available now by invitation only and will be available to buy, sell, transfer or redeem for physical gold in Q3 2018.