Lately, it seems that ICO's (initial coin offering) are a hot topic in the crypto space which ended last year in the billions in the amount of money raised for these projects.
So the game goes like this you find an ICO get in on the pre-sale which usually costs anywhere from .10 cents to $1.50 per coin/token wait for the exchange to open and dump the coins for a profit of anywhere from 10x to 30x depending on how long you hold. Then it's on to the next one, dump, rinse and repeat. (most of them like to claim they are on a blockchain or the latest one is that they have some AI Trading BOT that can speak 10 languages and bring you coffee!) lol
The flip of the flip side to these ICO's
Investing in these ICOs is no doubt riskier than investing in an IPO but if the huge rise of Bitcoin and other Coins is anything to go by, is it a bad idea to invest a little in a good solid ICO? Well from my experience yes and no. When I was going through a rough time I put no more than what I could afford to lose in some really risky ICOs and some in more solid ones.
Luckily I made out great on all my investments but there are a too many of them out there right now just looking to scam you and this is becoming a problem. It's like the Wild Wild West out there with a new platform opening up every day it's getting harder to tell which are scams and which are legit. My experience with these over the past few months tells me most of these ICOs with lending platforms will eventually shut down and run off with everyone's money. Some will let you make a profit while others will just exit scam right out of the gate. Being in the crypto game could be a gamble if you go down this route, so I would say if it seems to good to be true stay away.
Regulations on ICO's
I think we need regulation for these ICO's not only because of whales dumping and taking massive profits but because of all the scams going on at the moment. I mean anyone can start an ICO or an ERC20 token with a couple hundred dollars, buy a web template and walk away with millions. Something has to give here! China put a ban on them. Now, I don't think we should ban them but we need some sort of regulatory system to keep an eye out on these companies.
My Take
Like I said at the start I took a chance and made profits on a few risky and solid ICO's but I was in a tight spot at the time and took the risk. (I am crazy like that and that's just my experience with my money) I would say if you are involved in making money this way then you know the risks that come with them. As for me, my ICO days are done. I was thinking a little deeper and even if you invest in one that lasts a couple months and you make all your money back but someone comes in on the same month with as little as $100 to invest and the company exit scams I would feel really bad and would not want to be a part of a company that would take advantage of people that way. Besides that $100 in some countries is a lot of money.
Again I am not saying they are all scams but most of the lending and staking ICO's won't be around for too much longer, especially when regulations come in. Well, that is my hands-on lesson on what I learned about ICO flips last year. I am just your ordinary single mom who learned a lot about crypto in 2017 but still has a long way to go!
Be smart, do your research and stay safe. In the end its your choice and I am by no means a financial expert or adviser. I am just someone who has dipped her toes into a few and got out alive! At this moment in my life, I would rather hold Bitcoin, Eth, BCH and let it ride up.
What are your thoughts on all of the ICOs? Please DO NOT leave any referral links in the comments sections.
Steem on!!!
I hope you enjoyed. Please Upvote, Resteem, and Follow me @road2wisdom
ICOs have already had a pretty good beat down from regulators in fact they are illegal in China and they are illegal to invest in here in the USA (even though some believe that is not the case)
Yes I knew about China and i didn't know about here in the USA . I know some dont let you participate in them if you are from the States. Thanks for your input
in case you missed them, I covered a bunch of this in a few recent posts I authored "last year". 😂
As such, I wouldn't expect much "protection" from regulators either...
Link: How much would STEEMIT or BitShares be worth as SHARES on the New York Stock Exchange?!
Link: SEC clarifies its perspective on ICOs, and guess what... YOU'RE GUILTY!!!
Thanks for the links @alexpmorris yeah i see you saw this ICO game a long time ago. Crazy that all these lending platforms are popping up like this. All with more or less the same template. :/
Isn't it what Investment banks have been doing for long time? Except when same thing is done by general public it's banned...it's Stock 2.0 that everyone can participate.
Among all the bad are some Jewels
I am glad to hear you made out ok in crypto's. Me to.
Hope you have been taking profits and re-investing in Silver ounces as a hedge?
My suggested buys are XVG (competes with Monero but with more options),
BTS (first decentralized exchange and now RiseCapital bank becoming partner as first Crypto Bank) and
LTC (about to release first ICO on the network)
Hi @healthiswealth I had to take the profits and live at the moment i took those risks! Things were a little hectic in my life, well still are but getting better! When I caution an ico i mean more of the lending platformed ones. Solid ICO's are can tell off the bat. I haven't bought more silver or gold yet. XVG is good so is monero, Monero is the best for privacy hands down. Thanks for posting :) have a good night.
People need to do their research and have an idea to what they are investing before they do no @road2wisdom ? I have made quite a few different investments, some good , none very bad because i looked before jumping and that prevents broken legs ! I dodnt want to see government regulation at all ! We as individuals control the markets with our forseight and investment or devestment !!
Yes, I agree research and reading the whitepaper for plagiarisms checking the team behind the project, etc. Have you invested in any risky ICOs? If so how long ago? the reason i ask is because I see 10 new icos popping up a day now!
well ofcourse i have ! but awhile back, say when it was more the real deal ! Now i think I will not be divesting any more !! Why open yopurself to the new market of the wild west with every other tom dick and harry opening their own ICO with their " groundbreaking offers )))" ??
Where there is a chance for serious profits, there are ways to scam people especially when there are no real rules. For many people this is a golden age, but golden ages can never last forever.
I agree many people do see this as the golden age and some are lucky enough to even have contacts with the devs of these icos and make out good. I mean I don't want to name any but there is one right now I bought at .72 cents and today 2-3 months later it's at 82$ crazy!
Good for you, you made a killing there. Hope your investment was significant ;)
I just followed you cause your posts seems to be informative post you can find similar crypto news on my steemit that might be productive for you too...
@reewy
I have came across requests - job posting on free lancing sites where people are asking to write a white paper for an ICO - as if its content writing. As you rightly said, its very hard to differentiate between the good ones and the scams.