Become a Member
Contribute $4 once as the personal entry point. That gives you a Personal S-NFT Member position, your Independence Vault pathway, and participation in the governance layer.
Tell me more · Plain-language guide
Simple first step.
Simple first step.
Real joint venture behind it.
This page covers what you need to understand before joining: what COG$ is, how it holds real assets, what the $4 does, who controls what, and what Expansion Day means. Plain language. No jargon. Start here.
How the first step works
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Four clear steps.
This page gives a new visitor the essentials: what the structure is, what the first step gives you, how real assets fit in, and how Members exercise control.
The joint venture holds real assets
The Members Asset Pool is designed to hold CHESS-registered shares in ASX-listed resource companies and, over time, other approved real-world assets under the trust structure.
Members direct operations
Member Polls, proposals, proxy direction, and governance activity sit with the Members. The Trustee executes the legal and custody-facing functions inside the limits of Trustee Functions.
Distribution and expansion
Distributions and reinvestment flow under the trust architecture, and Expansion Day marks the first activation of the Members’ own operating infrastructure, as certified by the Board and endorsed by the First Nations Advisory Council.
Who does what?
Members operate. The Trustee safeguards and executes.
Members direct the joint venture through governance, proposals, proxy direction, stewardship decisions, and the operating system. The Trustee holds legal title and performs limited legal, custody, compliance, and fiat functions.
What the Members do
Members direct the joint venture through governance. That includes Member Polls, proposal-making, proxy voting direction, stewardship decisions, communications, and the practical operation of the governance system.
- Direct national governance through the Member vote.
- Use the Independence Vault as the practical doorway into the system.
- Drive stewardship, engagement, and operational direction together.
What the Trustee does
The Trustee holds legal title to trust property, interfaces with external legal and compliance requirements, processes fiat where needed, and records the structure in legal instruments.
- Legal custody of trust property and documents.
- Compliance-facing tasks and lawful external interface.
- Execution of valid Member directions within Trustee Functions.
What your first step gives you
Low barrier. Real participation. A clear pathway forward.
The first step is deliberately simple so ordinary Australians can enter the joint venture, understand the structure in stages, and go deeper into the documents as they choose.
Your Independence Vault
Your practical dashboard for notices, governance activity, balances, proposals, and later token operations. The Vault is where Member operational authority becomes visible.
Your governance place
The personal pathway is where the one-Member-one-vote principle sits for national governance. It is designed to keep civic control with people rather than capital concentration.
Your reservation pathway
Your first step is simple: secure your place in the joint venture, enter the Vault pathway, and be ready to participate as the wider operating layer comes online.
Expansion Day
Expansion Day and the operating pathway.
Expansion Day is the day the first Members Node goes live, as certified by the Board and endorsed by the First Nations Advisory Council, and the joint venture’s operating layer begins running on the Members’ own infrastructure.
What Expansion Day means
It is the point at which the first Members Node, the Member Governance Vault, and the core operating records begin running inside the Members’ own infrastructure.
- The first Members Node is activated.
- The Member Governance Vault operates with the 3-of-Board multisignature mechanism.
- Operational state, governance records, and token records move into the Members’ own system.
Have harder questions about governance, regulatory position, or supply controls?
Read the Skeptic's Guide →Which document actually controls what?
The hierarchy is simple: the JV Agreement sits at the top, the Declaration and Sub-Trust Deeds give legal effect beneath it, and the governance system is the operating layer.
JV Agreement
The controlling instrument. It defines the joint venture model, the Member structure, the Trustee’s limited role, and the overarching governance architecture.
Declaration
The legal trust administration instrument that gives the joint venture effect in Australian trust law and records the agreed rules beneath the JVPA.
Sub-Trust A
The Members Asset Pool layer that holds the portfolio and related trust property inside the ring-fenced structure.
Sub-Trust B
The downstream distribution layer through which beneficiary distributions are routed proportionally under the structure.
Sub-Trust C
The charitable and shared-benefit layer, including First Nations custodianship, public-benefit purposes, and designated public and Member outcomes. Not less than 30% of annual Sub-Trust C distributions go to First Nations programs, an entrenched minimum that cannot be reduced by any resolution.
All governing documents are provided to new Members during the Joint Venture Agreement process. Become a Member — $4 →
Ready to take the first step?
Start as a Member. Go deeper when you are ready.
You do not need to master every clause on the first visit. Start with the first step, then read the governing documents as deeply as you want.
Still have questions? Read the Skeptic's Guide →