South African startup ProsperiProp, which uses blockchain to make property investment accessible to everyone, has appointed international firm Grant Thornton to independently audit its business processes and financial results as it launches its initial coin offering (ICO).
Disrupt Africa reported on Monday ProsperiProp would this week launch an ICO to fund its platform that allows people to buy into property investment portfolios using digital currencies.
The ICO – which is an increasingly common global phenomenon that allows people to invest in a project by buying issued coins – has launched today, with the whitepaper available here. Goldman Sachs reported that in June 2017 ICOs around the world raised US$550 million, while US$1.25 billion has been raised by 92 ICOs in 2017 alone.
However, ProsperiProp said there were too many startup ICOs around the world that positioned themselves as ethical and transparent operations, but lacked regulation by an authority. In order to reassure potential investors, the company has appointed Grant Thornton as its auditor.
“Grant Thornton has been appointed to audit our financial results as independent auditor on behalf of our investors. They are not party to the business nor do they endorse the brand. This ensures that PROPX token owners have the peace of mind that each cent that we earn is accounted for,” said Llew Morkel, chief executive officer (CEO) and founder of ProsperiProp.
The market is littered with stories of crowdfunding gone wrong, where investors have taken a risk and lost. This fuels the fear and uncertainty sometimes associated with this industry.
“Unfortunately not all ICOs share ProsperiProp’s code of ethics. Voluntarily appointing Grant Thornton to audit our business processes and financial results underpins our resolve in building a virtuous business that is trustworthy, transparent and sustainable,” said Morkel.
