Regulating ICOs: Striking a Balance in 2017
ICOs, or initial coin offerings, have garnered substantial attention in the past few months and unsurprisingly the majority of the analysis to date has centered on the debate over whether a particular coin or token should be considered a security, and the technical considerations for setting up such an investment vehicle. In the midst of this, notably absent are the regulatory bodies to provide appropriate guidance in demystifying the treatment of ICOs and carrying out their role as stewards of the public interest. Here's the simple explanation as to why this topic should be at the....
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Initial coin offerings (ICOs) and appcoins are a hot topic in the blockchain community these days. Forward-thinking investors have thrown their support behind the movement, thought leaders have proclaimed that ICOs are turning the traditional venture capital model on its head, and bitcoin industry veterans have launched hedge funds to invest in blockchain tokens. I expect this discussion and activity to gain momentum in 2017, but I remain skeptical. As the most active investor in blockchain startups, we at Digital Currency Group are uniquely positioned to capitalize on the growth of ICOs.....
You may have missed it in 2016, but initial coin offerings, or ICOs, have become the dominant way to fund new cryptocurrency projects. In an ICO, a project sells part of the total token supply to early adopters in exchange for money with which to progress. ICOs have two primary benefits: they provide funding to the team to see the project through, and incentivize a community to contribute (who gain if the project succeeds and the tokens are worth more than they bought them for). Although 2016 witnessed a high number of ICOs, they are not a new phenomenon and some ICOs from earlier than....
The cybersecurity millionaire and former presidential candidate sees new additions to his legal woes. On Monday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed suit against John McAfee for allegedly promoting initial coin offerings (ICOs) without disclosing that the ICO issuers were paying him, a violation of U.S. securities law.Per the complaint: "From at least November 2017 through February 2018, McAfee leveraged his fame to make more than $23.1 million U.S. Dollars ('USD') in undisclosed compensation by recommending at least seven “initial coin offerings” or ICOs to his Twitter....
Liquidity mining is a marked and significant improvement over the investment mechanisms of ICOs, but is it here to stay? By the end of 2018, many crypto skeptics had their “I told you so” moment, as many initial coin offerings, or ICOs, failed to deliver on their promises. Between 2017 and 2018, 3,250 projects were launched via ICO and $21.4 billion was collected from investors. But by early 2018, a study revealed that nearly half of 2017’s ICOs had failed — with another 13% considered “semi-failed” — dealing financial blows to coin purchasers anticipating gains. Many projects achieved....