LONDON, Feb. 1, 2021 /PRNewsCentre/ — Ditto, the award-winning global music distribution and record label services company, which has processed more than $1 billion in royalties to date, has today announced Opulous: a pioneering peer-to-peer platform to help increase artists’ access to capital without the need for traditional institutions such as banks.
The first-ever decentralised finance (DeFi) offering backed by music as an asset class, Opulous will function as a loan pool which artists can borrow from and also contribute to. For those artists looking to borrow money, the loan is guaranteed against the artist’s past streaming revenues with the copyrights they own held as collateral. Meanwhile, artists, and other investors, will also be able to pay into Opulous’ Music Copyright Pools, earning 10% per annum on any contributions they make.
Opulous will use blockchain technology to connect investors with artists needing a loan, driving fresh investment into an industry that is set to double revenues over the next decade. Smart contracts will automate monthly premium and interest repayments and direct profits straight to investors. It will onboard staking from other parties to enable the widest possible backing.
The idea was inspired by Ditto’s 250,000 plus users, many of whom hold their streaming revenues in their accounts and who also may not be eligible for financial support through traditional means. Open to anyone, not just Ditto users, Opulous offers a bold new venture for investors while providing the option of financial support for artists who are looking to fund the next stage of their careers.
Currently in development by Ditto and RandLabs, Opulous is being built on Algorand’s public blockchain. Founded in 2017 by acclaimed cryptographer Silvio Micali, Algorand is an open source public blockchain based on a pure proof-of-stake consensus protocol that supports quick, efficient and secure transactions anywhere in the world.
Opulous has already raised $1.5 million in its seed round of funding, including support from Borderless Capital, TrustVerse, Somesing, BASIC, and Kosmos Capital, with Elastos confirmed as one of the first staking partners. A minimal viable product (MVP) is expected in two months.
Commenting on the launch of Opulous, Ditto CEO Lee Parsons said, "Musicians are often largely overlooked when it comes to traditional banking loans, or the terms are so unfavourable it isn’t worth their time. Using De-fi , Opulous cuts out traditional banking, providing musicians a platform with minimal interest payments, while giving investors the chance to stake a claim in one of the most exciting and fastest growing financial industries in the world."
"Using blockchain technology to democratize the access to the music’s capital markets is really disruptive and unique. We are excited to back the Opulous platform and for the opportunities this is bringing to investors and music artists. By building on top of the Algorand blockchain, Opulous platform will perform as one of the first real world DeFi applications," added David Garcia, CEO and Managing Partner of Borderless Capital.
About Ditto Music
Ditto Music is one of the world’s biggest digital distribution and record label services platforms, supporting over 200,000 artists and labels across the world. Our services include music distribution to major stores like iTunes and Spotify, chart eligibility, royalty collection and online promotion. Ditto’s record label services handle accounts for major and independent artists. These include social media, radio plugging, online and offline promotion and project management.
About Borderless Capital
Borderless Capital is a modern financial institution investing capital and co-building financial products that accelerate access, bootstrap adoption, and create value globally through the Algorand Borderless Economy. We do not stop with just investment. We also provide guidance and mentorship to grow our portfolio companies into successful and category leading businesses. As a thought leader in blockchain with deep expertise in the Algorand ecosystem, we advise our portfolio companies on go-to-market strategies to effectively build their network effect. In short, we leverage the synergy of our portfolio, partners network, and domain expertise to create value for everyone.
For more info: https://www.borderlesscapital.io.
About Algorand Foundation
The Algorand Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that has a vision of a borderless, frictionless economy built on public, decentralized blockchain technology. The Foundation, in partnership with Algorand Inc, has built the Algorand blockchain protocol — initially designed by cryptography pioneer and Turing award winner Silvio Micali and a team of leading scientists — as the cornerstone of achieving this vision. The Foundation envisions a wide breadth of applications being built on this protocol by a new, wider community of mainstream developers. The Foundation is committed to facilitating this innovation in a sustainable and eco-friendly manner by utilizing the Proof of Stake consensus algorithm.
For more information contact:
Conor Mallon
Conor.mallon@ldcommunications.co.uk
Jasper Watkins
Jasper.watkins@ldcommunications.co.uk
SOURCE: Ditto Music; Algorand Foundation
