China Construction Bank unit raising $3 billion via blockchain bonds, which can be purchased with bitcoin

China Construction Bank's (CCB's) branch in Labuan, Malaysia, is raising up to $3 billion via blockchain bonds.

The bonds will be publicly traded on Malaysian digital asset exchange FUSANG and can be bought with bitcoin and U.S. dollars, according to a statement shared with The Block on Wednesday. Both retail and institutional investors can buy these bonds. The minimum investment limit is $100 and trading begins Friday.

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The bonds will be issued by Longbond Ltd, a special-purpose vehicle set up to issue digital bonds and deposit the funds with CCB Labuan. The bank is the lead arranger and listing sponsor of the bonds, which will offer an annualized rate of Libor + 50 basis points, i.e., around 0.75% at current levels.

Henry Chong, CEO of FUSANG, said that digital securities can power financial inclusion, by combining the benefits of blockchain technology with the tokenization of traditional securities. "We believe that this will be the start of Crypto 2.0. – the true institutionalization digital asset products," said Chong.

Residents of the U.S., China, Iran, North Korea, and some other restricted countries are not allowed to invest in the bonds.

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Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.