Geneva, 20 February 2025 - The Capital Markets and Technology Association (CMTA) is excited to announce the launch of a new privacy-preserving version of its CMTAT framework, designed specifically for the tokenization of securities. The launch is carried out by Taurus, a Geneva-based digital asset infrastructure company. This innovative update enhances the existing CMTAT standard, which is widely recognized in the financial sector.

Key Features and Benefits

The privacy-focused CMTAT leverages advanced technology from Aztec, utilizing an upcoming layer 2 solution that employs zero-knowledge proofs. This allows transactions to be recorded on the ledger without revealing sensitive information such as the sender, recipient, or transfer amount. This feature is crucial in today's financial landscape, where privacy and regulation compliance are paramount.

Unlike privacy-oriented cryptocurrencies, the new CMTAT enables users to create their own tokens while ensuring adherence to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and sanction-related regulations. Additionally, it incorporates governance features like role-based access controls, enhancing security and compliance.

Addressing Industry Challenges

The introduction of this privacy-preserving CMTAT is a significant step for the use of public blockchains in the financial sector, particularly the need for privacy in transactions while maintaining regulatory compliance. As financial institutions increasingly adopt digital asset solutions, the demand for secure and private transaction methods has never been higher.

Technical Insights

The CMTAT framework is open-source and available under a permissive license, allowing developers and institutions to access and implement the technology easily. For more technical details, interested parties can explore the framework on GitHub: CMTAT on GitHub [github.com].

Collaboration and Future Directions

Taurus, a Geneva-based digital asset infrastructure company, has played a pivotal role in developing this new version of CMTAT. As the CMTA aims to take a more active role in the digital asset space, we encourage collaboration with industry stakeholders to further enhance the framework and its applications.

By prioritizing privacy and compliance, the CMTA is committed to leading the way in the tokenization of securities, ensuring that the financial industry can embrace digital transformation while safeguarding essential regulatory standards.

About CMTA: The Capital Markets and Technology Association (CMTA) is a not-for-profit organization based in Geneva, aiming to set standards for the use of new technologies, especially distributed ledger technology, in traditional capital markets. Founded in 2018 by Lenz & Staehelin, the law firm, Swissquote, the online bank, and Temenos, the provider of banking software, with the support of the EPFL, the CMTA has grown to include over 40 members from the financial, technological, and legal sectors. It publishes open standards for the tokenization of financial instruments, the professional custody of digital assets, and compliance with anti-money laundering regulations for digital assets. It also publishes open-source smart contracts for the creation and trading of digital assets, in particular the CMTAT.

About the CMTAT: The CMTAT is a smart contract framework for the tokenization of securities on distributed ledgers such as blockchains. It is chain-agnostic, meaning it can be implemented on various public or permissioned blockchains, with current versions available for Ethereum and Tezos. The framework is modular, supporting the on-chain execution of corporate actions such as distributions. It is complemented by an open-source "rule engine" that adds a governance layer to the tokens, incorporating features such as the whitelisting or blacklisting of ledger addresses and the enforcement of conditional transfers.

The CMTAT has become a benchmark for the tokenization of securities, both in Switzerland and internationally, notably mentioned in the "Guardian" project led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

About Taurus. Taurus SA is a Swiss company, founded in April 2018, that provides enterprise-grade digital asset infrastructure to issue, custody, and trade any digital assets. Taurus also operates a marketplace for private assets and tokenized securities. Jean-Philippe Aumasson, Taurus' co-founder and Chief Security Officer, chairs the CMTA's Technology Committee.

Explore the GitHub repo: https://github.com/taurushq-io/private-CMTAT-aztec/