Blockchain firm GuildOne is leveraging the sustainable Cardano Network to pioneer carbon credits backed by Validere’s energy data analytics platform.
BlackRock, Sequoia and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan took part in $421m deal
In a world that is seeing the economic centre of gravity moving to Asia, does Canada have what it needs to ensure that the prosperity the nation has enjoyed will be sustained in the decades ahead?
Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Category Archives: Fintech and Networking Events
GuildOne Inc. Launches Landmark IoT-Verified Carbon Credits on the Cardano Network
GuildOne | Release | Nov 2, 2021
Blockchain firm GuildOne is leveraging the sustainable Cardano Network to pioneer carbon credits backed by Validere’s energy data analytics platform.
CALGARY, Alberta--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GuildOne Inc. (GuildOne) is pleased to announce that the company has issued its first series of voluntary carbon credits on the Cardano network as digital tokens. Each token represents a tonne of carbon saved from emission through underground storage.
Under its sustainability division, ESG1, GuildOne united an ecosystem of technology and energy partners for the issuance, including leading data analytics SaaS provider Validere, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and an energy partner, who generated the credits through a Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) project at a facility in Alberta.
See: Are the new carbon offset ETFs too simplistic of a solution?
The vision behind ESG1’s initial project was a technological solution to the challenges facing the rapidly growing voluntary carbon credit market, predicted by former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney to reach $100 billion by 2030, including widespread fraudulent and misrepresented credits.
ESG1’s tokens include the carbon’s proof-of-origin, verified measurement and analysis using Validere’s commodity data cloud, and attestations certifying the data. The automated process reduces the high costs of manual data capture and verification, making trusted credits economically viable at scale.
“Achieving meaningful environmental progress requires collaboration amongst multiple stakeholders. This combination of data analytics technology, energy industry expertise, and blockchain to measure and sequester carbon is a great example. We believe coming emissions goals will create increasing demand for solutions that ensure validation and audit trails,” said Zach DeWitt, a Partner at Wing VC and Validere investor.
Carbon credits from CCUS are expected to be a major contributor to global efforts to fund the $90 trillion in sustainable infrastructure required by 2030 to support decarbonization, according to the World Bank, and the credit market is a key priority at November’s COP26 UN Climate Change Conference.
“Tokenized carbon credits, offsets, and renewables may prove to be the pinnacle non-fungible token (NFT) of our lifetime,” said Anoop Nannra, Global Blockchain Leader at AWS. “Seeing partners like GuildOne build great solutions, and customers across the board in energy, capital markets, oil & gas, and elsewhere develop broader awareness of how to actualize their ESG goals through the adoption of blockchain technology is exciting.”
See: Capitalism must be saved by capitalists, argue these pioneering ESG investors
According to GuildOne CEO James Graham, the low carbon intensity of the Cardano platform and its native asset and smart contracts functionalities were key to the company’s decision to use it for the initial credit launch.
“We have an incredible ecosystem committed to building solutions that can help bridge the global gap in climate finance, and Cardano’s commitment to sustainability made it our leading choice for a public blockchain platform,” he said. “We’re excited to continue our work on Cardano and also develop new interoperability with R3’s Corda, our private blockchain network partner.”
The next stage of GuildOne’s ESG1 initiative includes data registration on Corda linked to Cardano token issuances and to settling token transactions as native assets on the Corda network. The company is also developing projects to issue forestry backed ESG credits that support Indigenous environmental reconciliation in Canada.
View the original release --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
[Nov 18, IIROC Virtual Event]: Quebec’s Bill 64 regarding the Protection of Personal Information
IIROC | Nov 2, 2021
IIROC will host a live virtual conference about Quebec’s Bill 64 regarding the protection of personal information. The conference will feature a panel discussion about the new privacy requirements that apply to all public and private firms operating in Quebec. While the requirements of Bill 64 will be phased in over a three-year period, the task of ensuring compliance is significant and will require dedicated time and resources. Join us to learn key aspects of the new legislation.
Details:
Thursday, November 18
1:00 to 1:45 p.m. Eastern Time (ET)
Panelists include:
- Claudyne Bienvenu, Vice-President, Quebec and Atlantic, IIROC
- Eloïse Gratton, Partner and National Co-Leader, Privacy and Data Protection group, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
- Elisa Henry, Partner and National Co-Leader, Privacy and Data Protection group, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
See: Privacy Implications of an Open Banking System in Canada
The conference will be broadcast in French and English, and we will accept questions in both languages. We encourage you to send your questions in advance to Suzanne Lasrado, Director, Member Regulation and Strategy at slasrado@iiroc.ca, and if time permits, we will respond to all questions.
A recording of the webcast will be released shortly after the event date.
This conference will qualify for Compliance CE credit. CE letters will be distributed via email at the conclusion of the event.
Register for the November 18 IIROC event --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
| | |
|---|---|---|
| | |
Cato Institute Event (Video): Digital Currency: Public or Private?
Cato Institute | Nov 2, 2021
Who should supply the nation with digital currency? Should the Fed do it, should the private sector do it, or should it be provided by some combination of the two? Join us on November 2 for a conversation with J. Christopher Giancarlo, former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and Dante Disparte, Circle’s chief strategy officer and head of global policy.
See: On the Brink Podcast: George Selgin of the Cato Institute on Stablecoins, Bitcoin and Free Banking
The event will be moderated by Cato’s Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives director emeritus George Selgin, during which Giancarlo and Disparte will discuss the merits of digital currency, both public and private.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
| | |
|---|---|---|
| | |
[CIX Digital Summit Oct 27-28]: 10 AWESOME REASONS TO BE AT CIX THIS WEEK!
CIX | Oct 25, 2021
1) Presentations by the 30 award winning companies, as selected out of 492 CEOs & Founders of CIX Top 20 Early and CIX Top 10 Growth 2021 Inductees:
2) AND your chance to meet the presenting companies face to face after their presentation in the 6 ‘Meet the Presenting Companies’ sessions.
3) More presentations from founders and CEO of these promising startups
- a) Atlantic Canada Tech Showcase
- b) DMZ Women Founders Showcase
- c) Intuit Prosperity Accelerator.AI Showcase
4) Reverse Investors’ Pitches - Top VCs explain why you should choose them!
5) Canada Success Story Spotlights: fireside chats with founders and CEOs sharing their journey and insights.
6) CIX 2021 Innovator of the Year -Trulioo’s CEO in a fireside chat with investor TCV.
7) Ask an Expert - Your opportunity to pick the brains of serial entrepreneurs, top investors in face to face conversations.
8) The Current M&A Landscape - Hear how the pandemic is impacting current deals and how you can benefit.
9) Digital Identity and Credentials - Vaccine Passports, DeFi, age verification and passwords. How they work and the opportunities to use them to build your business.
10) Recruiting Talent in the Current Climate- hear from experts discuss the struggles for finding tech talent and strategies for successful recruiting.
Register for the 2021 CIX Digital Summit Oct 27-28 --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
| | |
|---|---|---|
| | |
FTX lures blue-chip investors in $421m funding round
Financial Times | Harriet Agnew, Eva Szalay, Joshua Oliver and Arash Massoudi | Oct 21, 2021
BlackRock, Sequoia and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan took part in $421m deal
FTX has agreed a $421m funding round with backing from groups including BlackRock, Sequoia and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, marking the latest sign that blue-chip investors are warming to digital assets.
The deal values the Bahamas-based cryptocurrency exchange at $25bn, the company said on Thursday, and shows the increasing appetite from traditional investors to back crypto companies despite intensifying regulatory scrutiny into the sector.
See: Canadian Regulators Bringing the Canadian Crypto Sector to Heel
In total, 69 investors participated in the fundraising, including funds managed by BlackRock, Temasek, Tiger Global, Ribbit Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners, FTX said.
“We are focused on establishing FTX as a trustworthy and innovative exchange by regularly engaging with regulators around the world,” said FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.
He said new funds would allow the exchange to expand in new jurisdictions and that its recent growth had allowed it to “partner with investors that prioritise positioning FTX as the world’s most transparent and compliant cryptocurrency exchange”.
Bankman-Fried, a 29-year-old California native who founded FTX in 2019, is now one of the richest people in cryptocurrency markets with an estimated fortune of $8.7bn, due to his earnings from the exchange and from Alameda Research, a crypto market making company he set up in 2017.
See: Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index (CBECI): China’s crackdown puts US in pole position and Canada in 4th
He had previously said that he would be open to major acquisitions in the traditional finance world, once his exchange becomes large enough. He said earlier this year that FTX was on track to make $1bn of profit this year.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
| | |
|---|---|---|
| | |
IMF Seminar (On-demand): Digital Money Revolution
IMF Annual Meetings (2021 Washington DC)| Oct 18, 2021
Overview of IMF Seminar 'Digital Money Revolution'
Digital finance innovations—central bank digital currencies, private eMoney, stable coins, or cryptoassets—may bring changes in the way we lead our lives. This seminar reviews the implications of this transformation for the international monetary system.
See: The Impact of Fintech on Central Bank Governance
Moderator:
- Martin Wolf is chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, London.
Speakers:
- Kristalina Georgieva is the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- Benoît Cœuré was appointed Head of the BIS Innovation Hub in 2020.
- Eswar Prasad is the Tolani Senior Professor of Trade Policy and Professor of Economics at Cornell University.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
| | |
|---|---|---|
| | |
[Event, Nov 2]: The Future of Canadian Competitiveness
Degroote School of Business | Oct 5, 2021
In a world that is seeing the economic centre of gravity moving to Asia, does Canada have what it needs to ensure that the prosperity the nation has enjoyed will be sustained in the decades ahead?
How does Canada’s competitiveness stack up against its global peers and potential challengers? Does Canada have the skills, assets and institutions to compete in the global market, near-term and long-term. In a world that is seeing the economic centre of gravity moving to Asia, does Canada have what it needs to ensure that the prosperity the nation has enjoyed in the past will be sustained in the decades ahead? These are just some of the questions we will explore with Arturo Bris from IMD, based in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Event, Oct 7, 2021: Rising to the Challenge of New Global Realities
Arturo Bris is a Professor of Finance and Director of IMD’s World Competitiveness Centre. He specializes in working with senior executives from a wide range of global clients on issues related to competitiveness, finance and governance. His prolific research output has been published in leading journals, making him one of the top one hundred most-read finance academics in the world. His latest book, Blockchange! provides insights on how to survive the crypto economy. He holds a PhD in Management from INSEAD.
Date & Time
November 2, 2021
12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Register Here (free)
Continue to the full event page --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
| | |
|---|---|---|
| | |
