Real Estate Marketing & Beyond
Decentralized title registry startup Propy has said it's working with the government of Ukraine to allow online real estate purchases by foreign investors for the first time. The company also plans to use blockchain, the technology that underpins Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, as a ledger to record all real estate deals involving foreigners.
From the capital Kiev to the Black Sea beach cities, Propy will enable Ukrainian properties to be sold entirely online. As of January 1, new legislation will also allow foreign investors to purchase land in Ukraine, opening up the nation’s rich agricultural resources to international buyers. Pilot programs will be led by Propy in coordination with Ukraine’s Agency for E-Governance throughout the next year.
“Our ambition is for Ukraine to be one of the world’s foremost nations in establishing a comprehensive blockchain ecosystem, and the real estate sector forms an important part of our overall blockchain strategy," commented Oleksandr Ryzhenko, head of the State Agency for eGovernance of Ukraine. “Adopting the blockchain’s transformational technology will benefit all counterparties in real estate transactions through fostering greater transparency, efficiencies, security, and compliance.”
“Ukraine’s recent commitment to build a blockchain-based internal government database with Bitfury was a great first step. Ukraine’s government is strongly interested in building upon this progress by leveraging Propy’s technology to facilitate online real estate transactions to attract foreign property investors,” said Natalia Karayaneva, CEO of Propy. “While this clearly benefits the Ukrainian real estate market, it also allows foreign investors to purchase enticing properties in a very low price range, all with the benefits and security that Propy provides.”
Ukraine’s housing prices experienced a massive decline in 2014 and 2015, and prices are down nearly 70 percent below their 2008 peak. However, Ukraine’s economy shows signs of recovery, with the GDP rising 2.3 percent last year. This has made real estate investments appealing to foreign buyers, and the Ukrainian government is seeking ways to facilitate transactions to boost economic outlooks in the nation.
To solve problems of real estate’s legacy registry systems and outdated property sales process, Propy uses smart contracts to track and execute real estate transactions according to regional regulations. By using the Ethereum blockchain, Propy allows brokers, buyers, sellers, and title agents/notaries to sign off on transactions within their existing legal frameworks. The Silicon Valley based company is advised by the founder of TechCrunch, Michael Arrington, Alain Pinel, Apple’s Daniel Kottke and Bessemer Venture Partners’ David Cowan.
Propy’s PRO token will be required for interaction with the Propy Registry, specifically when users change ownership of a title or register a new title. ERC-20 PRO token will allow for both simple integration into users’ wallets and ease of use in traditional exchanges. 100,000,000 PRO tokens will be available for purchase in PRO’s token sale beginning August 15, 2017. For more information, please visit: http://tokensale.propy.com/
