On Monday, Fasset, the privately held infrastructure disruptor (featured on a recent episode of the Investable Universe podcast) using blockchain applications to enable fractional ownership of sustainable infrastructure assets in emerging markets, made a historic announcement as part of its participation in the Central Bank of Bahrain‘s (CBB) Regulatory Sandbox. Fasset has successfully executed the Proof-of-Concept (PoC) tokenization of a Tesla Supercharger charging unit, a decisive step in the advancement of the electric vehicle (EV) industry in the Middle East.
The tokenization project is being run in collaboration with Bahrain-headquartered NEC Payments B.S.C., a digital payment technology company and developer of disruptive enterprise and consumer digital financial services products. In addition to Fasset, NEC Payments is a strategic partner in the Gulf region to major brands such as MasterCard, Visa, AppTech Corp, and STC Bahrain.
As part of the first tokenization of a Tesla charging unit, Fasset created 10 “tokens”—digital representations of fractional ownership—as part of the pilot. These tokens grant holders access to a wall charger at discounted rates—as co-owners in the electricity supplied by the unit. The 10 minted tokens have been distributed to Bahraini residents, who are participating as the Sandbox pilot volunteer customers, and may be bought, sold, or traded just as access tokens for any other service.
In a formal statement on the partnership with NEC Payments, Fasset CEO Mohammad Raafi Hossain, a former Advisor to the UAE Prime Minister’s Office, said: “As this milestone marks the first Proof-of-Concept tokenization of a hard asset on Bahraini soil—the Fasset team is incredibly proud to showcase the potential of Bahrain’s emerging technology sector. As we continue to support the development of green technologies, including EVs, and digital assets across the Gulf Region, we believe that combining the incredible innovation happening in these two industries will play an important role in creating a more sustainable future. We are excited to have the opportunity to work with like-minded partners, such as NEC Payments, in pursuit of these goals.”
An NFT for the Middle East
Of the 10 minted tokens, one token has been converted into a credit-and-use non-fungible token (NFT). The NFT token–one of the first NFTs to be created in the Middle East–was given to NEC Payments Co-Founder and Chairman, Fuad Nonoo to commemorate the milestone.
Speaking on NEC Payments’ partnership with Fasset and as an NFT holder of one of the 10 minted tokens, Fuad Nonoo said: “This is a significant moment for the Middle East’s greentech sector, providing a timely and salient use case of tokenization technology with real consumer and cultural impact. Drawing on our experience at NEC Payments of innovating in the digital financial services sector, we are excited to support the emergence of new forms of digital assets globally, from cryptocurrencies to NFTs.”
Fasset has built the world’s first comprehensive ecosystem dedicated to merging digital asset innovations with the real economy. Overseeing the entire process of asset tokenization, Fasset focuses its services on sustainable infrastructure assets—fractionalizing large assets into smaller “pieces” or tokens using blockchain technology. The Fasset Exchange (FEX), serves as a zero fee platform where these tokens can be traded. Fasset was authorized to participate in the CBB’s Regulatory Sandbox to test its asset tokenization solution last year.
