A truly decentralised industry digital gold certificate empowered by a marketplace of gold suppliers, global brands and a network of specialist partners.

V1 – Nov 2019 Whitepaper

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Table of Contents01 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

02 MELD’S TARGET MARKETS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Why Gold?

Cryptocurrencies

03 CURRENT LANDSCAPE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Volatility and Liquidity

Current Solutions

04 THE MELD GOLD CERTIFICATE SOLUTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Cold Storage and Custodial Services

Meld the Market Maker

Meld Participants and Benefits

Partners

Overall User Benefits

05 MELD TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Tokenomics

The GOLD CERTIFICATE

06 MELD ROADMAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

07 MELD TEAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

08 CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

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01 – Executive SummaryCryptocurrency was invented in response to the shortcomings and problems inherent in financial systems throughout the world; financial systems that allowed the subprime mortgage crisis to wreak havoc across much of the developed economies by way of continual scandals in various countries. Consequently, this has led to innovations and advancements in blockchain technology that paved the way for creating digital currencies to replace their fiat counterparts, and to establish a new set of standards for global and local economies. While these advancements continue to show promise, the ongoing volatility and lack of liquidity within the cryptocurrency space prevents mainstream adoption as a method of exchange for daily transactions. This volatility has led to an increasing interest in asset backed solutions, which are generally designed to achieve stability through tethering the cryptocurrency (or token) to a tangible underlying asset (e.g., real estate, commodities, etc.). Some are collateralised through fiat currency while others are collateralised through other cryptocurrencies. Other so called stablecoins are not collateralised at all, and pose entirely different risks including the perpetuation of extreme volatility and significantly low liquidity. None of this activity has helped to assuage fears with regards to cryptocurrency in general, or had much impact in terms of achieving mainstream adoption. Cryptocurrency projects have also explored revisiting the gold-standard as a viable option. Gold does represent a better underlying asset valuation for digital currency, but there is still room for improvement. For the cryptocurrency offerings within the current gold-tethered landscape, there is a lack of full cryptocurrency functionality, also a limited number have the option to fluidly move out of gold, rather only into, and they are not fundamentally a gold company; on the contrary, they are tech companies attempting to enter the gold industry. This has the downstream impact of fees being levied by intermediaries and inflexibility in terms of conversion to fiat currencies.

Meld, by contrast, is built on the strong foundation of The Imperial Group, a team that collectively has over 100 years of experience in the precious metals industry, combined with a growing network of partners, including bullion dealers, retailers and vaults. Meld’s token is designed specifically to lower the barriers to gold becoming a digitally connected, cryptographically secure, digital asset of the future. Meld’s partner network also incentivises a rapid global adoption with gold dealers around the world via the Meld platform being able to offer in person trading access to a range of cryptocurrencies. Ultimately, Meld would be a store of value, a currency used for everyday PoS transactions, online digital payments, P2P payments, and online trading between precious metals, cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies alike. 

Furthermore, Meld has the benefit of analysing and learning from the shortcomings of similar projects. Such analyses have helped to provide a clear roadmap for the solutions we provide within this white paper, such as incorporating transparent audits and asset validation. The Meld team has substantial experience in the nuances of vault storage, cold storage, and other facets of the gold industry from mining to refinement and bullion dealing.

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02 – Meld’s Target MarketWhy Gold?For most of human history, the concept of currency has centered on gold, an asset that supports a stabilizing balance between intrinsic and extrinsic value. In addition to its industrial utility and popularity as a material for jewelry, gold has particular physical properties that makes it a desirable store of value. Unlike fiat currency,1 other assets or other precious metals, gold is: • Rare enough so as to not degrade the supply vs. demand equilibrium, e.g. a quickly increasing price

followed by a sharp downward valuation trajector.2

• Has the perfect mix of increasing extraction costs, with increased difficulty to acquire to create the right conditions for continued growth in value (the same principles that were used when creating Bitcoin and the value drivers).

• A tangible asset that naturally reigns in volatility since the supply vs. demand spectrum is predicated on how much physical gold is in circulation.

• Highly portable.• A globally recognized as a store of value.3

Despite the advent of fiat currencies, and their subsequent dissociation from gold as the underlying valuation metric, gold has remained a trusted hedge and store of4 value during turbulent economic times.5 6

Cryptocurrencies Technological advancements in communications (IoT), networking, cryptography, and blockchain have paved the way for currencies to largely transact via digital interfaces. These innovations now allow trillions of dollars to be transacted using a digital equivalent to fiat currencies. But, the aforementioned volatility and liquidity issues have perpetuated the search for altcoins that are backed by a stable asset. Certainly, there is room for both types of cryptocurrency: purely speculative and used for investment purposes or cryptocurrencies with a reliable valuation and used for daily merchant-consumer transactions. With regard to market maturity, cryptocurrencies are still working through an experimental stage for moving beyond the emotionalism that’s connected to volatility and several projects have been launched in an attempt to produce a robust stablecoin for daily use – akin to how fiat currencies are currently deployed.

1 Rowlatt, Justin. (2013). Why do we value gold? BBC News. Available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-2525595732 Smith, Rich. (2018). How Much Gold Is Left in the World? The Motley Fool. Available at: https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/05/12/how-much-gold-is-left-in-the-world.aspx3 Garret, Olivier. (2017). All the Reasons Cryptocurrencies Will Never Replace Gold As Your Financial Hedge. Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/oliviergarret/2017/10/26/all-the-reasons-cryptocurrencies-will-never – replace-gold-as-your-financial-hedge/#7b9372f6380e4 Joyce, Mike. (2015). Why the United States Abandoned the Gold Standard. Available at: https://www.gulfcoastcoin.com/blog/why-the-united-states-abandoned-the-gold-standard 5 Clark, Jeff. (2016). Why Gold Will Save You from the Next Economic Collapse. Hard Assets Alliance. Available at: https://www.hardassetsalliance.com/blog/why-gold-will-save-your-portfolio-in-the-upcoming-rece ssion?utm_campaign=HA-055&utm_medium=ED&utm_source=for# 6 Crise, Cameron. (2017). Is Gold Really a Good Hedge? Bloomberg. Available at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-10/is-gold-really-a-good-hedge

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03 – Current Landscape The current global financial system is broken. Consumers are desperate for a fairer playing field – one where they are in control.

Blockchain and cryptocurrencies have paved the way for change, but the landscape remains user-hostile and risky, resulting in a demand for utility and stability.

Volatility and LiquidityThose who enter the world of cryptocurrency are made keenly aware of its valuation volatility and lack of liquidity. Although there are die hard “HODLers” of specific cryptocurrencies, the extreme increases or drops in price inhibit widespread adoption of any cryptocurrency. Certainly, volatility tends to be positive for reaping high rates of return on investment (ROI). But, the downside is equally as steep. The beauty of cryptocurrencies is that they can serve different functions – as is evident when comparing Bitcoin with Ethereum or any of the altcoins that enter the market each year.

There is, however, an additional downside: a bounty of transaction fees levied by miners and the exchanges (with the latter imposing fees for both revenue generation and to recoup any banking fees required for converting cryptocurrency to fiat currency). Furthermore, the cryptocurrencies that the exchanges include in their coin listings have an impact on potential liquidity due to an extreme imbalance between buyers and sellers.

The cryptocurrency market volatility affects the liquidity since there is a wide variation between the buyer and seller asset valuation. There is also a risk of the particular cryptocurrency (or cryptocurrencies) being expunged from an exchange.

For example, should a cryptocurrency project fail to attract investors, then it’s less likely to attract buyers, thus reducing liquidity. Lack of liquidity also tends to be a recipe for market manipulation as proponents of a particular cryptocurrency scramble to try and salvage the coin’s valuation. Indeed, the potential for market manipulation and lack of liquidity is the reason that, in 2018, Bittrex announced its intention to “remove 82 tokens” from its cryptocurrency listing. Summarily, liquidity and volatility are vital components that operate in tandem to support the continued use, trading, and investment for a specific asset.

Cryptocurrencies currently fail to achieve this tenuous balance.

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Current GOLD SOLUTIONSThere are several other gold-backed cryptocurrencies on the market. However, Meld leads the way as a digital gold certificate that can function as a true medium of exchange, has a clearly defined auditing process, is designed for ease of use by any user (from beginner to expert), and has an established network of partners within the gold industry. Certainly, each competitor offers a component of these benefits, but other than Meld, none of the others provide a complete and authoritative system for consumers, investors, merchants, and the gold industry.

Perth Mint

PAX Gold

Hello Gold Digix Meld Gold

Money

Singapore Metals

Exchange

Decentralised metal holding Check Check

Clear credible audit process Check Check Check Check Check Check

Simply & easy to use Check Check Check Check

Option to sell Check Check Check Check Check

Backed by credible gold company Check Check Check Check Check Check

Approachability Check Check Check Check

Established partner network Check

Blockchain enabled Check Check Check Check Check

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04 – The Meld Digital Solution Meld has a team of industry experts, led by The Imperial Group and is in the advantageous position of having direct access to a network of miners, refineries, vaults, bullion dealers, and auditors.

Meld is integrating blockchain technology into the world’s oldest and most stable asset: gold. Blockchain technology allows the gold industry to bring this highly sought after commodity to a broader market by tying it to a cryptocurrency. Thus, the divisibility, transparency, speed of trade and flexibility that cryptocurrency offers will be merged with the tangibility, liquidity, robust infrastructure, value, and stability provided by the gold industry.

As such, Meld is establishing a bridge for adoption by billions of people who are waiting for the birth of a new financial system. The result is a genuine, transactable gold-backed token that can be used as a global currency. Meld’s objectives are facilitated by two Meld digital certificates: • The gold-backed Cryptocurrency (Meld GOLD): 100% gold-backed (1 token = 1 gram of physical gold

bullion) with complete transparency that allows holders to collect their physical gold if they wish. The Meld GOLD digital certificate will be a stablecoin that is used as a currency and asset (store of value and capital appreciation) by users.

The silver-backed Cryptocurrency (Meld SILVER): 100% silver-backed (1 token = 1 gram of physical silver) with complete transparency that allows holders to collect their physical silver if they wish. The Meld SILVER digital certificate will be used as a currency and asset (store of value and capital appreciation) by users.

Note: this whitepaper focuses on the Meld GOLD. Meld’s SILVER digital certificate will have the same fundamental capabilities to the Meld GOLD. Meld sees a dual token approach as an added advantage in the market for the ecosystem, partners and consumers.

Cold Storage and Custodial ServicesSecurely storing and insuring digital currency is imperative. By utilising the existing infrastructure and procedures of the long-established vaulting industry, and combined with customised protocols and procedures, Meld will be the first in the world to offer this much needed service with a range of unique features:• Quick and easy access to vaulted funds, allowing fast movement back to market. • Ability to store under your own name through our custodial services providing the ultimate legal

security.• Fully insured with a 1st tier world class insurer.• Physical storage within some of the highest rated security vaults.• Multi-level protocols to ensure the security of funds at every point.• Estate protocols to ensure distribution of funds in the cases necessary.• Through the Meld platform users and partners will be able to quickly and easily move funds into and

out of cold storage in seconds. 

Meld the Market MakerMeld will act as a market maker within its ecosystem while also offering services to exchanges and payment facilitators. By providing buy and sell pricing for Meld GOLD across a range of currencies, Meld will give exchanges great depth and stability. This offering also gives the Meld GOLD the ability to achieve high velocity trading with complete liquidity, thereby increasing exchange earning potential and giving its user a truly stable global currency. Meld as the market maker has two major benefits: • It gives Meld GOLD additional exposure to new clients which, in turn, increases Meld GOLD volumes. • Increases the cryptocurrency exchange adoption of the Meld GOLD’s digital certificate.

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Meld Participants and BenefitsMeld is creating a world where blockchain technology can enable gold to be seamlessly transferable and stored securely in vaults throughout the globe. Transactions will be audited and authenticated by third parties. This open platform enables a worldwide network of gold dealers, buyers, traders, vaults, miners, and refineries to participate. The Meld platform provides a transparent, unbiased level playing field where partners are able to join a network that is built on streamlined processes, thereby opening up resources, pricing, and services usually restricted to only the world’s largest dealers. Aside from Meld itself, there are several participants and/or partners that are critical to the operation of the broader platform.

PartnersMeld partners will provide the required supply side mechanisms for extracting, refining, evaluating, and storing the gold. The partnerships will include:• Vaults• Bullion Dealers• Refineries• Miners• Auditors

Gold dealers also have the opportunity to be the foundation of a global affiliation of independent and local gold banks and cryptocurrency exchanges. Gold dealers already manage many of the elements needed such as know your customer (KYC), anti-money laundering (AML), and cash handling processes. As such, the gold industry is poised to fill this market demand for a gold-backed cryptocurrency which will establish a new financial system. Through the Meld platform, gold dealers will be able to:• Open customer accounts;• Facilitate trades;• Accept payments and facilitate withdrawals in physical precious metals, fiat and cryptocurrencies;• Complete AML and KYC processes;• Provide customer with assistance for any of their Meld-oriented needs.

This will achieve a completely decentralised monetary transaction system, with branches across the globe offering an on and off ramp for fully gold-backed digital currency.

Current Strategic Partners 

The Imperial Group

A Brisbane-based gold company supplying wholesale to the bullion industry, refining services and with 3 retail outlets of their own.

The Imperial Group alone will contribute • 6 retail locations (3 existing & 3 launching) with a 6 month OTC trial already successfully undertaken;• 3 ecommerce sites;• Over $50M in existing gold trade the first year;• Over 20k+ current customers;

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Future Strategic Partners Exploratory conversations have already begun with one of Australia’s leading Mint’s, combined with one of Australia’s oldest privately operated precious metal companies, and one of Australia’s leading private vaulting companies.

In addition to the above contributions, partners have committed to transitioning all of their excess gold trades, gold recycling, hedging, storage, and related transactions for processing through the Meld Network within the first 2 years of the platform launch.

How do partners benefit from Meld? Meld and blockchain technology will revolutionise the way the current gold industry works, making trading, dealing, and offering gold not just easier, but more efficient and cost effective than ever before. Partners will also be equipped with everything they need to easily and knowledgeably offer a greater range of products while being a part of a global network. As such their market reach will be amplified with every new user and partner joining the network, thereby creating a ready and waiting customer base. Some of the benefits to partners include:• Complete liquidity at industry leading pricing;• Easy and cost effective hedging;• Automated AML and KYC;• Streamlined physical gold supply;• Diverse gold product offerings: unallocated, digital, storage and insurance, custodial services; • Cryptocurrency offering: buy, sell, trade, unallocated, storage and insurance, custodial services; • Ability to retain customers who are diversifying into cryptocurrencies;• Capture new customers through the Meld network.

Partners also have the benefit of creating a long-term and automated revenue stream by servicing Meld customers and helping them join the Meld ecosystem. The symbiotic relationship between Meld and the partner network allows partners to earn additional revenue through every transaction a customer makes, whether indirectly via a Meld partner or directly through Meld. Partners are able to create long term residual income and increase their business value while also having a strong and saleable business asset: gold. Partners have two ways to build their customer network:1. Sign up new Meld customers by either converting their own customer base or simply servicing

customers looking to adopt. 2. Start servicing an existing customer. If a Meld user begins to use the services of a Meld partner who

did not originally refer them, then they complete a simple form to initiate a Meld customer account.

Overall User BenefitsAlong with providing a substantive stablecoin, Meld’s core selling point is a beautifully simple user experience. Meld is going to spearhead a much-needed design movement, vastly improving the UX for crypto-natives while making it easier for new users to onboard and begin using cryptocurrency. Wealth management has never been easier to manage as Meld creates a fluid and intuitive process that includes:• Trade between currencies• Multiple payment options• Access to market insights• Transfer of funds• Global partner directory• Withdraw physical gold• Refer and earn gold

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• Full accounting capability• Customisable dashboard• Flexible cold storage

Crypto payments are more straightforward than ever. Payments can be made in a range of currencies: Meld GOLD, other cryptocurrencies or fiat currencies. Funds arrive in the currency of choice, and are exchanged automatically. Further user benefits are as follows: • Low to no cost peer-to-peer payments;• Bill and bank account payments;• Merchant app that covers user exchange fees;• Vaulting facilities and cold storage are safer and more secure;• Low cost insurance on cold storage;• Specially designed protocols for securing physical assets;• Quick access to move funds back into the marketplace;• No need to manage private keys or codes;

Our partnership network provides state-of-the-art and fully-insured vaulting facilities which collectively store trillions of dollars in assets, have regular independent audits, and have worldwide locations.

05 – Meld Technical Specifications TokenomicsFor any digital certificate solution the market supply and demand can be clearly articulated. Market speculators, trust fund owners, institutions, and various other parties demand stability. The supply comes from the providers of that stability: the network operators, gold suppliers, and other parties generally referred to as partners in this document. The Meld project has an additional supply and demand tension which includes people who want the convenience of a transactable currency provided by the liquidity and availability of the partners in the supply side of the equation.

The Meld GOLD Digital Certificate The gold-backed digital certificate represents real world gold. It is available to be traded on centralised and decentralised exchanges alike.

Meld will be a market leader in pricing, with a 1% trading fee.

To cover ongoing storage, insurance and auditing costs of the physical gold holdings a 0.05% transfer fee will apply whenever on chain movements of GOLD occurs.

Certificate Rights for GOLD • Every GOLD certificate equals 1 gram of physical gold.• Users can redeem Meld GOLD digital certificates for physical gold at participating partners around

the world or via the Meld platform where the physical gold will be shipped directly to them. Costs vary depending on the form they which to receive their gold in, for example 1oz bars or 1kg bars.

• The gold will be stored in vaults around the world and controlled by Meld.• Users will have the ability to have the gold title in their name; this will be an option they choose as it

won’t always be possible. For example, when gold is being exchanged out in crypto-land we can not know who owns it.

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Meld GOLD Flow How the Meld GOLD flows from a partner perspective:1. Gold dealers and refineries send gold to the vaults.2. Vaults confirm the arrival, authenticity, and quantity with Meld.3. Meld mints Meld GOLD equal to the amount of new gold supplied.4. Gold is sold into the marketplace through the Meld platform or partners.

How Meld GOLD flows from a user perspective:

Meld mints digital gold certificates equal to the new gold supplied.

Buy digital gold certificates from Meld partner sites or storefronts.

Burn certificates by exchanging them for fiat or physical gold at Meld partner locations.

Interact through the app, trade them on other exchanges, or ultimately use them to make payments at the point of sale.

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The Gold-Backed Digital Asset Stability The way to keep the price of a digital certificate pegged to the market rate is to ensure that access to the underlying asset is consistently available and is combined with market depth to ensure there are enough buyers to allow for liquidity. In the case of gold, this means that traders or investors should be able to buy and sell gold with similar real-world ease. The digital certificate price is driven by the market spot price of gold. To reflect this in the crypto world, the tokens need to match the availability of the gold. This means that a shortage of tokens could lead to a jump in price and a glut could lead to a drop in price. This highlights how critical it is for the token to be driven by market makers who have access to a reliable source of real world gold and who purchase gold at market rates. Meld itself will act as a market maker connecting the traditional gold industry with the cryptocurrency world.

Meldcoin Metrics

Name Meld GOLD

Code GOLD

Price 1 gram Gold

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06 – Meld Roadmap

07 – Meld Team

Michael Cotton Founder

With over a decade of experience in precious metals, Michael is working to revolutionise the industry by integrating technology-driven innovation. Skilled at identifying opportunities and forging strong relationships with strategic global partners, Michael has negotiated several large deals including the absorption of Bullion Deposit Australia.

Scott Waterman Founder

Starting his own numismatic company at the age of 22, Scott Waterman has gone on to change the way investors trade in rare coins servicing clients across the globe. Scott was formerly head of sales for Melbourne Mint, one of Australia’s leading rare coin and precious metal dealers. Former Vice President of the Australian Numismatics Dealers Association and a current board member, Scott has overseen the rollout of a state of the art vaulting facility in Brisbane and the expansion of the Melbourne Mint brand via numerous physical locations across the eastern seaboard. Now heading up sales at The Imperial Group.

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Advisors

AJ Milne General Manager

Previously Director V+, Partnership Arm of global payments business Verrency

Former Commercial Manager of Havas Ventures

Experience across the investments, entrepreneurial and blockchain marketplaces

Henrik AnderssonCIO, Apollo Capital

CIO of Apollo Capital, Australia’s Premier Crypto Fund

CoFounder of mStable – new platform for decentralised stablecoins

Ex-VP Institutional Equity Sales at Handelsbanken Market Securities, New York

Tim Johnston Managing Director of Apollo Capital

Previously worked at DMP Asset Management, a boutique Australian Equities Fund Manager

Associate at Dominet Venture Partners

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08 – Conclusion