Tokenized securities platform Bitfinex Securities El Salvador S.A. de C.V. is launching a tokenized debt issue to develop a 4,484 square meter Hampton by Hilton hotel complex at El Salvador International Airport.

In January, Bitfinex Securities became the first regulated entity to receive a license to operate in El Salvador under the country’s new Digital Asset Securities Law — anticipating high demand for such regulated investment vehicles following the successful launch of U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds.

At the time, the tokenized securities token platform said it was accepting customer applications and had established a pipeline of potential financial asset issuances expected to come to market in the first half of this year.

This tokenized debt, issued by El Salvador firm Inversiones Laguardia S.A. de C.V., is now set to become the first to trade on the platform. The token will be issued on the Liquid Network, a Bitcoin sidechain, under the ticker HILSV, and traded against U.S. dollars and Tether’s USDT stablecoin. 

“The HILSV token marks the first digital asset tokenization from El Salvador and represents an important step forward in developing its nascent capital market as well as introducing a major new asset class into the market,” Bitfinex Securities CTO Paolo Ardoinio said in a statement shared with The Block.

“For the first time, investors who do not usually have the opportunity to invest in such assets have the opportunity to do so, while issuers in markets which have less access to capital are able to tap into a new asset class to raise finance,” Ardoinio added.

Seeking to raise $6.25 million

The issuance aims to raise $6.25 million, offering a 10% coupon over a five-year term — meaning buyers receive an annual interest payment equal to 10% of their investment over five years, after which the principal is returned. The capital raise will commence on May 13, with a minimum investment of $1,000.

The initiative also hopes to generate 1,000 jobs during the construction phase and up to 5,000 jobs related to the complex during its operation.

“The recently implemented digital asset laws will grant us access to capital markets previously unavailable to us,” Inversiones Laguardia President Roberto Laguardia said. “This access will allow us to develop crucial tourism-related infrastructure, thereby unlocking the potential for growth in the tourism sector.”

HILSV follows a tokenized bond offering by Alternative via Bitfinex Securities AIFC in Kazakhstan in November. Bitfinex Securities announced that this first tokenized bond on the Liquid Network raised over $5.2 million in USDT. Customers seeking to access all Bitfinex Securities issuances must be verified with both its Kazakhstan and El Salvador entities.

El Salvador hit the headlines in 2021 by giving Bitcoin legal tender status. The country also launched an “Adopting El Salvador Freedom Visa” program in collaboration with stablecoin issuer Tether in December. Under the scheme, investors apply for the Freedom Visa by investing $1 million in Bitcoin or USDT.