The group that holds the commercial rights to the World Chess Championship will file an IPO on London’s Alternative Investment Market in 2020. It aims to raise funds by issuing security tokens—a digital representation of equity—using blockchain technology; each will be worth hundreds of dollars. (Financial Times)

Talking point: The game has struggled with its finances in a digital age, and it the highest levels it’s almost entirely dependent on rich backers. According to Crunchbase, World Chess raised US$6 million in its latest funding round in May from venture firm Prytek and one of its supporters Igor Rybakov, a Russian billionaire. The pre- IPO, which launches next week, will see World Chess sell around four to six per cent of the company to investors in the U.S. and EU. While the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority has said the token offerings are “very high-risk, speculative investments” with no guarantee of return and potential for fraud, World Chess hopes the money raised will help transform chess into an e-sport, complete with an online championship platform and anti-cheating software.