When investors buy tokenized shares, they have a choice: pay via bank transfer or pay with cryptocurrency. Bank transfers are familiar and widely used - but purchases made via bank transfer cannot be settled immediately, because traditional payment processors do not interact with smart contracts.
Stablecoins solve this by settling the payment on-chain as well. When an investor pays with a stablecoin, the purchased shares can be delivered immediately, securely, and without the need for intermediaries. The payment and the share delivery happen in the same transaction, on the same infrastructure.
On the Aktionariat platform, all tokenized share transactions - both direct investment and secondary trading - can be settled using Frankencoin (ZCHF), a Swiss franc-denominated stablecoin. This guide explains what stablecoins are, why they matter for equity tokenization, and how Aktionariat integrates them into its share trading infrastructure.
What is a stablecoin?
A stablecoin is a digital currency designed to maintain a stable value relative to a reference asset — typically a national currency like the US dollar, euro, or Swiss franc. Stablecoins are engineered to hold a 1:1 exchange rate with their reference currency, making them useful as a payment method on the blockchain.
Investors can hold stablecoins, make payments, and settle transactions on-chain — using the same blockchain infrastructure that hosts the tokenized shares themselves. This is what makes instant, atomic settlement possible: the payment and the delivery of shares happen together, in one step.
The global stablecoin market exceeds $300 billion in circulation, though over 99% of that is denominated in US dollars (primarily USDT and USDC). Swiss franc-denominated stablecoins are a much smaller but growing segment — and a critical one for Swiss financial infrastructure.
Three types of stablecoins
Image 1. Three types of stablecoins
Fiat-backed (centralized). A company holds reserves of the reference currency in a bank account and issues tokens 1:1 against those reserves. USDT (Tether) and USDC (Circle) are the most prominent examples. These are simple and widely used, but they depend on a central issuer who controls the tokens - including the ability to freeze or blacklist individual holdings.
Crypto-collateralized (decentralized). Users deposit cryptocurrency as collateral and mint stablecoins against it. The system is over-collateralized, meaning there is always more value locked as collateral than stablecoins in circulation. No central issuer controls the tokens. DAI (MakerDAO) and Frankencoin (ZCHF) use this model.
Algorithmic. These stablecoins attempt to maintain price stability through automated supply adjustments - without full collateral backing. Several have failed catastrophically (most notably TerraUSD in 2022), and this design is widely considered the highest-risk approach.
Why stablecoins matter for tokenized equity
The connection between stablecoins and tokenized shares is structural, not incidental. Three properties make stablecoins essential infrastructure for on-chain equity markets.
Instant, atomic settlement
Stablecoins are smart contract-compatible. When an investor sends a stablecoin payment to a share purchase contract, the smart contract can automatically verify the payment, deliver the correct number of shares to the investor's wallet, and record the transaction on the blockchain - all in a single atomic transaction. There is no clearing house and no intermediary.
This is fundamentally different from a bank transfer, where the payment has to be received and confirmed first to trigger the share delivery. With a stablecoin, both happen in the same moment, in the same on-chain transaction.
Settlement finality
A stablecoin payment on the blockchain is final. Once confirmed, it cannot be reversed, charged back, or disputed. For companies raising capital, this eliminates the risk of reversed bank transfers or bounced payments - a concern with traditional payment rails, especially for cross-border transactions.
Bank transfers are also supported on the Aktionariat platform, but they are processed off-chain. The company receiving the investment must approve the payment before shares are delivered. Stablecoin payments bypass this step entirely - the smart contract handles everything automatically.
The Swiss franc stablecoin landscape in 2026
For Swiss equity tokenization, the stablecoin that the issuer received needs to be denominated in Swiss francs. Paying for CHF-priced shares with a USD stablecoin would be possible, provided that the payment token is converted to ZCHF also in the same transaction, but this also introduces exchange rate and slippage costs.
The Swiss franc stablecoin market has evolved significantly in recent years.
CryptoFranc (XCHF) - discontinued. Bitcoin Suisse's CryptoFranc was the first widely used CHF stablecoin. It was centrally issued, fiat-backed, and classified as a payment token under FINMA guidelines. However, Bitcoin Suisse discontinued XCHF in August 2024, citing a strategic shift toward crypto investment services. This discontinuation highlighted a structural risk of centralized stablecoins: when the single issuer shuts down, every application built on that token must find an alternative.
Frankencoin (ZCHF) - decentralized, live since 2023. Frankencoin is the largest Swiss franc stablecoin currently in active circulation. It uses a decentralized, crypto-collateralized model (covered in detail below). Its money supply is approximately CHF 35 million, backed by over CHF 55 million in on-chain collateral. Because no single entity issues or controls it, it cannot be discontinued by a corporate decision.
Swiss bank consortium sandbox - in development. In April 2026, six Swiss banks - including UBS and Raiffeisen - launched a sandbox to test a regulated CHF stablecoin on Ethereum. This initiative targets institutional settlement infrastructure and is expected to run through 2026.
Sygnum DCHF - institutional only. Sygnum Bank offers a Digital CHF backed by Swiss National Bank deposits, but it primarily serves Sygnum's own institutional clients and is not broadly available for public use.
How Aktionariat uses stablecoins
On the Aktionariat platform, share prices are quoted in fiat currencies. When investors choose to pay with crypto, they use a Swiss franc stablecoin so the price they see matches the price they pay.
Payment options
Stablecoin (ZCHF). The preferred on-chain payment method. Investors pay in Frankencoin (ZCHF), which maintains a 1:1 peg to the Swiss franc. Transactions settle on-chain on Ethereum, with shares delivered instantly by the smart contract. A small amount of ETH is needed in the wallet to cover blockchain gas fees.
Bank transfer. Supported for direct investment. The investor receives payment instructions and transfers the amount from their bank account. The bank transfer is processed off-chain - Aktionariat does not handle or hold the funds. The issuing company itself reviews and approves the payment, after which shares are issued. The timeframe depends on the investor's bank and the company's approval process.
Why ZCHF specifically
Aktionariat selected Frankencoin (ZCHF) as its stablecoin for several reasons that align with the platform's architecture.
Swiss franc denomination. Shares are priced in CHF. A CHF-pegged stablecoin means the price investors see is the price that settles on-chain - for both the issuing company and the investor.
Decentralization matches self-custody. Aktionariat is built on the principle that investors hold their own shares in their own wallets. A decentralized payment currency fits this model: no single entity can freeze, censor, or confiscate ZCHF tokens. This is not a theoretical concern - centralized stablecoin issuers have frozen tokens in other contexts.
Continuity. After XCHF was discontinued in 2024, Aktionariat needed a stablecoin that could not be shut down by a single corporate decision. Frankencoin's decentralized architecture removes this risk. The protocol continues to operate as long as there are collateral providers and governance participants.
Regulatory alignment. ZCHF is classified as a payment token under Swiss law, consistent with FINMA guidelines. Tokenized shares on Aktionariat are ledger-based securities under Article 973d of the Swiss Code of Obligations. Both operate within established Swiss regulatory frameworks.
How Frankencoin (ZCHF) works
Frankencoin is a crypto-collateralized stablecoin - meaning its value is backed by other crypto assets locked in smart contracts, not by a bank account full of Swiss francs.
Minting. Anyone can create new ZCHF by depositing eligible crypto assets (such as ETH, WBTC or eligible tokenized shares) as collateral into the Frankencoin protocol. The collateral remains locked until the user returns the minted ZCHF plus fees.
Over-collateralization. The system requires more collateral value than the amount of ZCHF minted against it. As of mid-2026, the protocol holds over CHF 55 million in collateral backing approximately CHF 35 million in circulating ZCHF - a collateralization ratio of roughly 160%.
No oracles. Unlike most decentralized stablecoins, Frankencoin does not rely on external price feeds (oracles) to determine collateral values. Instead, it uses an auction-based liquidation mechanism where the market itself determines prices. This eliminates oracle manipulation as an attack vector.
Governance. The protocol is governed by Frankencoin Pool Share (FPS) holders - a community of participants who provide equity capital and vote on system parameters. There is no central issuer, no company behind it that could decide to shut it down.
Legal status. ZCHF is classified as a payment token under Swiss law. Under the EU's MiCA regulation, it qualifies as a crypto-asset with certain regulatory duties not applicable due to its decentralized nature. The smart contracts have been audited by ChainSecurity (three audits), Code4rena, Decurity, and BlockBite.
Origin. Frankencoin was founded by Luzius Meisser and designed as part of a PhD thesis at the University of Zurich's Department of Finance, which formally analyzed its game theory, collateral risk, and governance mechanisms.
How investors buy tokenized shares with stablecoins
For investors new to the process, here is how a typical share purchase works on the Aktionariat platform.
Image 2. Investor Flow
Step 1: Acquire ZCHF. Investors can buy Frankencoin through Swiss-regulated on-ramps like Mt Pelerin (bank transfer to ZCHF, zero conversion fees) or DFX (non-custodial, bank transfer). Investors who already hold crypto can swap on decentralized exchanges like Uniswap or Curve.
Step 2: Connect wallet. The investor opens the company's Investor Page and connects their wallet — typically the Aktionariat Portfolio App, which serves as both a crypto wallet and a portfolio dashboard for all tokenized holdings.
Step 3: Buy shares. The investor selects the number of shares, reviews the price (quoted in CHF, paid in ZCHF), accepts the token terms, and confirms the transaction. For direct investment, the smart contract delivers shares to the investor's wallet instantly. For secondary trading, shares are exchanged directly between buyer and seller, also settled in ZCHF.
The entire process - from payment to share delivery - takes minutes, not days.
Stablecoins vs. bank transfers: a comparison
| Dimension | Stablecoin (ZCHF) | Bank transfer |
|---|---|---|
| Settlement speed | Minutes | Depends on the investor's bank and issuer approval |
| Settlement type | On-chain, automated via smart contract | Off-chain, manually approved by the issuing company |
| Share delivery | Instant - shares delivered in the same transaction | After payment is received and approved by the issuer |
| Smart contract compatible | Yes - atomic settlement | No - payment and delivery are separate events |
| Availability | 24/7, no banking hours | Can be initiated any time; timeframe subject to bank processing and approval by the issuer |
| Counterparty risk | None (decentralized) | Standard bank processing risk |
| Gas fees | Yes - Ethereum mainnet gas fees apply | No blockchain fees |
| Intermediaries | None | Bank, potentially payment processor |
FAQ: Stablecoins and tokenized share payments
What is a stablecoin? A stablecoin is a digital currency designed to maintain a stable value relative to a reference currency — such as the Swiss franc. Stablecoins are suitable for payments and settlement on the blockchain because they can interact with smart contracts directly.
Why does Aktionariat use a stablecoin? Bank transfers cannot interact with smart contracts, which means shares cannot be delivered instantly when paying by bank transfer. Stablecoins settle on-chain, enabling the smart contract to deliver shares to the investor's wallet immediately upon payment.
What is Frankencoin (ZCHF)? Frankencoin is the largest Swiss franc stablecoin in active circulation. It is decentralized, over-collateralized by crypto assets, and classified as a payment token under Swiss law. It was founded by Luzius Meisser and has been operating since 2023.
Can I use a bank transfer instead? Yes, for direct investment. The investor transfers the amount from their bank account. Aktionariat does not handle or hold the funds — the issuing company itself reviews and approves the payment, after which shares are issued. The timeframe depends on the bank and the company's approval process.
Where can I get ZCHF? Through Mt Pelerin or DFX (bank transfer to ZCHF), or through decentralized exchanges like Uniswap and Curve (crypto to ZCHF swap).
Do I need ETH to pay with ZCHF? Yes — a small amount of ETH is required to cover Ethereum mainnet transaction fees (gas).
Why not use USDC or USDT? USDC and USDT are denominated in US dollars. Additionally, these are centralized stablecoins controlled by single entities that can freeze tokens — which conflicts with Aktionariat's self-custody model. Frankencoin (ZCHF) is decentralized and denominated in Swiss francs.
What happened to CryptoFranc (XCHF)? Bitcoin Suisse discontinued XCHF in August 2024 as part of a strategic shift. Aktionariat transitioned to Frankencoin (ZCHF). This discontinuation highlighted the risk inherent in centralized stablecoins that depend on a single issuer.
