I realize what I am describing is very similar to Colored Coins. Like I said before there are many other projects which are similar.
But what I am proposing isn't just an abstract idea. I'm saying we need to actually start making a security using an idea like I proposed or maybe just following the colored coins proposal.
There are enough great protocol ideas out there, we need to actually implement one and start with a very simple trading API and get some securities on board.
What I proposed was the simplest and quickest way to get to that point as far as I can tell. Sure, it might not be elegant, but it would work and right now that is what we need as we are losing centralized exchanges left and right. If BitFunder ends up getting shut down, havelock won't be too far behind and bitcoin securities will be a thing of the past.
I'm a software engineer working in the finance industry and I'm going to start working on this in my spare time although I worry that I don't have enough spare time to make progress quick enough in this project.
I'm starting to repeat myself but colored coins aren't an abstract idea either. There are working implementations and highly talented people developing it further as we speak. A lot of effort was also placed in the design, with solutions to problems you haven't even thought of yet if you're just starting out.
You're welcome to join the development effort. coloredcoins.org is a good place to start, or
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/bitcoinx when you want to go into the details.
It's still too soon to list any major asset on it, but if you want to do some more active field testing, you should ask Alex if the software is ready for that.