The owner and the asset
Evolution Stables is a New Zealand racehorse syndication business, run by its chief executive, Alex Baddeley. It sells fixed-term shares in horses through a digital platform, working with studs, breeders and trainers, so people can share in a horse’s racing and its income without the full cost of owning one.
The horse is First Gear, a three-year-old gelding at the time of the offer. He is trained by Stephen Gray, who has Group One wins and a strong record in Singapore and New Zealand. Gray ran the Group 1 winner Bahana at the Dubai World Cup Carnival in 2018.
Evolution Stables holds a lease over First Gear, registered with NZTR. A lease gives the right to race a horse and keep its winnings for a set period. Token holders do not own the horse or the lease. They have a contractual right to a share of the income he earns during the term.
Why tokenise
Racehorse shares are usually sold privately, to people a stable or trainer already knows, and full ownership carries high costs. Evolution Stables wanted to use technology to open racing to new investors and fans.
A token on a regulated platform let it reach investors outside New Zealand, in smaller amounts, while the horse stayed with his trainer. The asset was in New Zealand, the token was issued from Dubai, and the investors came from three countries.
What we did
We announced the project in April 2025 and issued the token as an asset-referenced virtual asset (ARVA) through Tokinvest, regulated by VARA. An ARVA is a token whose value refers to a real-world asset, issued under VARA’s rules.
Subscription money was paid to Evolution Stables against the lease. During the term, 80% of First Gear’s race winnings, together with any sponsorship, breeding and media income, is passed to token holders in the payment order set out in the whitepaper. The term is fixed at 12 months. There is no redemption during the term, and at the end the tokens are burnt and have no remaining value. Race winnings depend entirely on results, so income may be nil. Tokens use the ERC-1404 standard, which restricts transfers to whitelisted, verified wallets.
The result
The offer was fully subscribed, and we announced the sell-out on 30 September 2025, five months after the project was first announced.
Tokenising a racehorse is a groundbreaking step for the industry. The response to this first offering has been phenomenal, it proves that technology can create new access and passion-driven opportunities for investors and fans, while supporting the wider ecosystem.
