The little island of Malta continues to gain attention from the blockchain industry, now in the form of a new token-based bank. Calling itself ‘Blockchain Island‘, Malta has been tenacious in removing the obstacles that blockchain and crypto companies encounter with regard to banking. That goal is about to take a giant leap forward.

The aptly-named Founders Bank intends to provide “progressive fintech solutions to the world of innovation and blockchain”. The project is a collaboration between Binance and the blockchain-based equity fundraising platform Neufund. Being that Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by turnover, prospective investors are already bullish about its success.

Founders Bank claims that it will become the first stable and high-tech banking solution owned by and for its founders, thus bridging the gap between the traditional financial world and innovative crypto companies.

Later this year, the bank will conduct an equity token offering on Neufund in collaboration with one of Europe’s major stock exchanges. This event will allow all market participants to become co-owners of Founders Bank. This pioneering creation “will allow our clients to decide on the development of the solutions they are using with blockchain-style governance model based on smart contracts.”

In comments to the media, Binance Founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao explained that Founders Bank would be the first decentralized and community-owned bank in the world:

We are not only excited to be one of the first investors of this inclusive community for this pioneering initiative, but also look forward to exploring the full range of its banking services. We continue to be delighted by the vibrant blockchain opportunities in Malta and look forward to launching more partnerships in the region.

The bank intends to provide tech and business companies with ‘top-notch’ banking solutions – as vague-sounding as that might be. Crypto customers will be able to use bank-issued credit cards and access their bank accounts from mobile and desktop applications (similar to Revolut, another online bank offering crypto services). The company is currently awaiting its banking license from the Maltese financial authorities. Expect a full launch in early 2019 once the equity token offering (mentioned above) completes in late 2018.

Founders Bank Chairman and Co-founder Dr. Michael Bianchi is a well-known businessman, investor, and corporate board director. In comments to the media, Bianchi noted that,

Founders Bank is the missing piece of #BlockchainIsland on Malta. We’re proud to announce our progressive banking solutions tailored for the needs of decentralized companies, with already existing support from the leaders of the blockchain industry, including Binance and Neufund. I am excited about the upcoming equity token offering where everyone will be able to become the co-owner of the company and shape the future of banking with us!

The company’s supervisory board and upper management include experienced entrepreneurs and industry experts. Among them are professionals from such blue-chip companies and institutions as Barclays, JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, the European Commission, the World Bank, Deloitte, OECD, and Deloitte.

Not incidentally, the Maltese Parliament recently (and unanimously) approved three blockchain-related bills designed to promote its cryptocurrency and blockchain ecosystem. And last week, a Malta-based blockchain company named Palladium launched the world’s first ICCO (Initial Convertible Coin Offering). With the advent of Founders Bank, the Blockchain Island of Malta certainly appears to be making its mark in the crypto world.