Swiss-based commodities fund Tiberius Group plans to launch Tiberius coin, or Tcoin - the first digital money underpinned by physically deliverable metals including industrials such as aluminum and copper, Reuters reported.
“We want to propose the idea of a cryptocurrency with real tangible net worth,” Tiberius Group co-founder Christoph Eibl told Reuters.
He believes that allowing buyers to redeem Tcoin for metal would give the currency a minimum value and avoid the extreme volatility of other cryptocurrencies. Unlike Bitcoin (Bitcoin), which is decentralized, user-generated and without a single administrator, Tiberius coin will be operated by a corporation.
The fund plans to market the coin to investors around the end of February. It is likely to trade at a premium above the price of the underlying metal, with the size of the premium dependent on the supply in circulation and demand.
Three versions of the Tiberius coin will be launched, each underpinned by a different investment strategy.
One will include nickel, cobalt and aluminum used to build electric vehicles. Another will be backed by copper, tin, zinc, metals used in high-tech sectors such as robotics.
A third will include precious metals gold, platinum and palladium, which are used as hedges against inflation and financial and economic uncertainty.