Tangible Asset Economy (TAE) Is the Only Way to Our Sustainable Future

Throughout history, some of the most spectacular financial crashes have been fueled by products that, in hindsight, nobody actually needed. These weren’t just simple miscalculations; they were full-scale systemic failures driven by speculative enthusiasm for financial innovations that lacked actual demand or any lasting value.

The same pattern keeps repeating: a product gets hyped, investors rush in, prices soar, and then—inevitably—the whole thing crumbles.

Take the 2008 financial crisis. The whole mess was set off by mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and collateralized debt obligations (CDOs). Sounds complicated, but at their core, these were just bundles of risky mortgages sold as “safe” investments.

Banks repackaged high-risk home loans and offloaded them to investors who, thanks to some financial gymnastics, believed they were making stable, low-risk bets. In reality, they were sitting on a ticking time bomb. When the housing market collapsed, so did these so-called investments, wiping out institutions, pensions, and entire economies.

The Dot-Com Bubble: Selling Ideas Instead of Products

A decade earlier, the late ‘90s had its own flavor of speculative mania, the dot-com bubble. Investors were throwing money at any company with a “.com” in its name, convinced that the internet was going to change everything overnight (which, to be fair, it eventually did—just not in the way these companies promised).

Startups with zero revenue and no clear path to profitability were raking in millions. Pets.com, a company that burned through cash trying to sell pet food online before people were comfortable shopping that way, became the poster child of this era.

Investors mistook potential for inevitability, and when it turned out most of these companies had no viable business model, the bubble popped.

Crypto Mania and the Rise of SPACs: New Names, Same Game

Fast forward to 2017-2018, and the cryptocurrency space was experiencing its own version of the dot-com craze. The Initial Coin Offering (ICO) boom saw thousands of projects raising billions from investors desperate to get in on “the next Bitcoin.”

The problem? Most of these ICOs had no working product, no business plan, and no actual use case. It was all hype, fear of missing out, and a few flashy whitepapers promising to revolutionize industries. When the market corrected, countless investors were left holding worthless digital tokens, and the cycle repeated.

More recently, we saw the explosion of Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs). These were basically blank-check companies that raised money with the vague promise of merging with a real business someday.

In many cases, the businesses they acquired were untested, speculative, or downright unviable. Investors poured money in based on grand projections, not solid fundamentals. As the initial enthusiasm wore off and reality set in, many SPAC-backed companies lost vast chunks of their value, proving once again that hype isn’t a substitute for an actual business.

The Core Issue: Speculation Over Necessity

And then came NFTs—the ultimate speculative asset. People were paying millions for digital images, memes, and video clips, convinced that these unique blockchain-verified assets would retain value indefinitely.

The concept wasn’t entirely without merit, but the execution? A gold rush fueled by hype and opportunistic actors. As Yahoo Finance put it, “an influx of unregulated investment, hackers, and scammers quickly exploited the space.”

People who got in early made fortunes. Those who arrived late? Not so much. As interest waned, the market deflated, and today, many once-prized NFTs are worth a fraction of their peak prices.

At the heart of these financial bubbles is the same fundamental problem: markets prioritizing speculation over real-world demand. The pattern is the same—products created not to serve a need but to fuel a financial feeding frenzy.

And as long as there’s greed, there will always be new versions of these speculative booms. The names change, and the technology evolves, but the lesson remains: when investment is driven by hype instead of actual necessity, a crash isn’t a question of if but when.

The IRMU Solution: A Strong TAE Model With Tangible Background Supported by Must-Have Products

However, there is hope. As they are doctors and “doctors,” for example, there are, besides fraud, also valid and built-to-last projects. One of the most potent, practical, and long-term beneficial TAE approaches comes from digitalizing industrial raw materials—a concept pioneered by the Themis Ecosystem (TE).

For that purpose, the team invented a whole new approach and even a new “measurement unit” called IRMU, or Industrial Raw Material Unit. The approach standardizes all industrially produced raw materials, priced in U.S. dollars, under a single denominator.

The core idea is based on the digitalization of authentic, tangible goods. IRMU, a so-called Ricardian generic contract, comprises proportional shares of all products generated by a specific technology called the driver and a CO₂ reduction component. (Similar to how carbon credits function.) That is, the total issuance of IRMUs within a given project reflects a share of the existing or future raw materials produced by its drivers.

The IRMU holder can sell or acquire raw materials proportionally packaged into a single IRMU unit. That means that each IRMU holder becomes the rightful owner of the raw materials that these technologies produce, forming part of both the short- and long-term economic framework.

Every technology that joins the Themis Ecosystem framework issues its own IRMU.

Strict Standards, Real-world Utility, and Competitive Advantage

IRMU issuance is governed by strict regulations, ensuring both sustainability and long-term economic viability. TE enforces rigorous criteria: only scalable, emission-free technologies that reduce CO₂ emissions and produce essential goods required for human habitation and survival can be classified as drivers. These include industries such as energy, waste management, transportation, housing, healthcare, food production, etc.

Each driver must surpass the research and development phase, proving itself as a fully operational, verified, and economically justified technology that addresses pressing global challenges in a way that will remain relevant for decades to come.

Moreover, the products these drivers generate—and are converted into IRMUs—must demonstrate strong and consistent market demand. As these are strategic, essential raw materials, their value has exclusively increased over the past decade.

There are three key factors for that: rising global demand driven by economic growth and industrial expansion, stricter governmental regulations phasing out harmful or outdated solutions and materials, and inflationary pressures that consistently push the cost of essential resources upward.

This trend is only expected to continue. Other reasons include a direct contribution to climate change solutions and a growing demand for sustainable innovations.

IRMU and Its Potential for Exponential Growth

Another key factor driving the increase in IRMU value is the distribution model for newly produced goods. The Themis Ecosystem (TE) framework ensures that the total number of IRMUs remains fixed at all times. At the same time, TE mandates the continuous expansion of production for each driver, following both micro- and macroeconomic planning.

As production scales up, the technology will generate more output than before, and all newly produced goods will be distributed across the existing supply of IRMUs. This built-in mechanism guarantees that the price of IRMU will rise organically, even without additional market demand.

Founder Roberto Hroval emphasizes that the expansion plan is developed conservatively, factoring in pessimistic growth projections. He states that there is a strong likelihood that actual expansion will exceed projections, as demand on the market far outstrips supply.

Furthermore, the valuation of products used in IRMU calculations is also deliberately conservative, set below actual market prices. Taken together, these factors give IRMUs the potential for extraordinary—even exponential—growth.

IRMU Storage and Trading

IRMU holders will store their units in MonaLisa, a registry similar to a land title system. Here, owners will have real-time access to their IRMU balance, valuation, CO2 neutrality, and current market price.

Additionally, the platform will provide a direct marketplace link, enabling users to either sell existing IRMUs or purchase additional units seamlessly.

To facilitate smooth trading, the development team has also built a dedicated exchange platform, the Online Industrial Exchange (OIX). This marketplace will function similarly to a commodity exchange, directly integrated with the MonaLisa registry.

Trading will occur in two phases. Initially, transactions will take place over-the-counter (OTC). Over time, IRMUs will transition to a fully digital trading platform.

Bridging the Gap Between Tangible Assets and a Sustainable Economy

The future of a strong, sustainable economy isn’t built on hype or speculation. It rests on tangible assets—real, essential resources that power industries and hold long-term value.

By turning industrial raw materials into measurable, tradeable assets, IRMU creates a resilient and future-proof economic foundation. Unlike the speculative financial products that have fueled past market collapses, IRMU is backed by physical resources—materials the world will always need.

By merging cutting-edge technology with real-world demand, the Tangible Asset Economy (TAE) offers a practical path toward financial stability, environmental responsibility, and sustainable growth.

IRMU isn’t just an investment; it’s a commitment to an economy rooted in actual value—one that supports vital industries while safeguarding the planet for future generations.