Association

Telcoin Autonomous Ops, Ltd (TAO)

The TAO is the administrative and production unit of the Telcoin Association, established to carry out needed goods and services production on behalf of the Association.

Telcoin Autonomous Ops, Ltd (TAO)

(5 members: Telcoin Holdings Pte. Ltd. selects all members in the first term)

  • Overview: The TAO is a corporation that is financed by, and authorized to facilitate, construct, maintain, coordinate, and otherwise administrate a variety of collective goods and services on behalf of the Telcoin Association of Miners and Miner Councils.
  • Purpose: The purpose of the Telcoin Autonomous Ops, Ltd (TAO) is to be a special-purpose producer and administrator of collective goods and services on behalf and at the direction and financing of the Telcoin Association.
  • Domicile: UK
  • Company Type: Private Limited Company
  • Shareholder: Wholly owned by the Telcoin Association
  • Corporate Number: 19501780
  • Incorporation Date: August 16, 2024
  • Organization Type: Special-purpose, multi-functional production and administration unit.
  • Duties: On behalf of the association, The TAO
    • Governance: Facilitates governance activities,
    • Agency, Coordination: Contracts and coordinates with third parties to implement proposals and maintain existing systems,
    • Development: Produces and maintains code including the initial development of Telcoin Network and the ongoing maintenance of various other network components as directed by the Association,
    • Administration: Takes on administrative and compliance tasks on behalf of the Association, and
    • Ecosystem Development: Drives ecosystem development internal and external within and to the association.
  • The TAO: Decision-making Authority and Rules

    OrganizationProposal AuthorityVoting AuthorityApproval RateQuorum Rate
    TAOAll Miner Council SnapshotsTAO Snapshot4/5 super-majority100%
    TAOAll Miner Group SnapshotsValidator Snapshot until a quorum of 10 validators is reachedPlurality100%

    Membership

  • Parker Spann: Executive Director
  • Grant Kee: Blockchain Engineering Director
  • Tim Mahota: Legal and Compliance Director
  • Rajesh Sabari: Ecosystem Development Director
  • Amir Shirif: Smart Contract Development Director
  •  

    TAO Rationale

    Why are we creating Telcoin Autonomous Ops, Ltd (TAO)?

    The Telcoin Platform, as hereinafter defined, is a system that works on mobile phones and uses blockchain technology. It allows people to do many different things, like sending money to each other, exchanging digital assets, and storing their own digital assets securely. People can also create and use various applications on the system. One of the features of the Telcoin Platform is its design and goal to make it easier for people to make payments to each other no matter where they are or what telecom network they use. It democratizes financial services, especially for the unbanked, by enabling customers to use smartphones to have better access to financial services at the same time having more control over their money. This will increase efficiencies of capital flows and in turn decrease the cost of capital.

    The Telcoin Platform enables the generation of a digital good called TEL. Miners on the Telcoin Platform compete with each other to earn TEL by contributing to the platform. Each miner earns TEL based on their own efforts and abilities, following rules set by the Telcoin governance system. Demand for TEL comes from people who need TEL in order to use the platform, like trading on TELx or sending money on the Telcoin Network. Miners also use TEL to help make the platform work and provide influence in the governance of the platform.

    The Telcoin Platform is governed and managed by four distinct types of miners operating through two legal structures, a Swiss Verein and a UK corporation.

    The Telcoin Association is the legal entity with authority over governance and platform management activities that structure interactions with Telcoin Network, TELx and Telcoin Application Network (collectively the “Telcoin Platform”) and the flow of TEL units it generates.

    The Telcoin Association is a non-stock, nonprofit collective association of persons that come together through a legally-recognized entity called an association. Telcoin Association’s nonprofit mission is to use blockchain technology to globally support financial inclusion and prosperity.

    The TAO is meant to be a general-purpose operating entity that serves to carry out the directives of the Telcoin Association. Another way to look at it, is that the TAO is a producer of collective goods and services that is financed by, and authorized to facilitate, produce, administer on behalf of the Telcoin Association.

    The TAO also serves to facilitate governance activities within the Telcoin Association and work with Miner Councils. Further, the TAO helps to drive Telcoin Platform ecosystem development internally with the community and externally with prospective miners. Some further examples of the efficiency and effectiveness provided by the TAO include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Social, Legal, Economic Scalability: It allows the TAO, and thus the Telcoin Platform, to operate at a larger scale and engage with service providers who require formal contracts – for example, it could establish a banking relationship to pay for certain service providers that do not accept crypto.
  • Decentralization and Adoption: It encourages further decentralization of the Telcoin ecosystem because this entity, at the direction of the Telcoin Association, can leverage other teams to execute work that can further the adoption of the Telcoin Platform.
  • Reduction of Risk: It also allows for a sustainable process to handle tax, accounting, legal, regulatory, and operational risk.
  • Reduces Decision-making Costs: It reduces decision-making costs in governance by serving as the proposal author for all elections, substituting on behalf of Council Members who fail to vote in a timely manner and on behalf of Miner Groups who have yet to achieve a quorum. Importantly, it represents the interests of Validators prior to the release and sufficient decentralization of Telcoin Network. The TAO is responsible for assisting prospective miners, council members and others in authorization processes with the Compliance Council. Additionally, the TAO reduces decision-making costs and increases minority representation through its empowered universal proposal authority in all governance module.
  • Minority Representation: The TAO has universal proposal authority, and so it can submit proposals on behalf of individuals whose voices are not otherwise being represented by their Council Members.
  • Overall, the TAO is meant to effectively be a production unit that helps miners and Telcoin Association Miner Councils to implement proposals in terms of construction and maintenance, research and development, education, networking and other operational tasks as determined by the Assembly working through Miner Groups and their elected Miner Councils. The Miner Councils provide funding to the TAO to either implement proposals itself or coordinate with external parties to implement and contract for services. TAO’s revenue to cover the above expenses comes primarily from periodic sales of TEL as directed by the Telcoin Association.

    Why are we domiciling TAO in the UK?

    The United Kingdom has recently demonstrated a proactive and crypto-friendly stance, particularly in relation to decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). This aligns well with the Telcoin Association's innovative structure and goals. The UK's proximity to the GSMA, which is also based in London, provides strategic advantages for collaboration and industry alignment. As a global financial center with centuries of experience, the UK offers a robust legal and regulatory framework that can adapt to emerging technologies while ensuring proper compliance. The UK's legal system also provides flexibility in establishing a wholly owned subsidiary of a Swiss Verein, which is ideal for the TAO's relationship with the Telcoin Association. Furthermore, the UK government's recent efforts to position the country as a crypto hub offer a supportive environment for blockchain operations. This combination of factors – a forward-thinking regulatory approach, strategic location, financial expertise, legal flexibility, and government support – makes the UK an optimal jurisdiction for domiciling the TAO and advancing the Telcoin Association's objectives.

    Why did we choose a corporation as the legal entity structure for TAO?

    In order to enable persons to come together and provide services for a collective benefit, they need to have a structure to facilitate the efficiency and effectiveness of their efforts. A corporation, which is a legal person, gives such a structure to operate in this manner. For example, the corporate structure, which is governed by its controlling shareholder, i.e. the Telcoin Association, operating through the corporation’s elected Board of Directors and its appointed officers, allows for clear and proper governance which enables more efficient and effective implementation. Moreover, the corporate structure provides limited liability protection for its officers and directors which incents greater participation in TAO’s business.