ICOs: A New Eldorado for Investors and a Revolution in Startup Financing? A Survey

Abstract

Initial coin offerings (ICOs) are a new financing source for startups based on the pillars of the blockchain ecosystem. ICOs are regarded as a disruptive way to raise funds digitally, ensuring speed, low cost and safety. ICOs have significantly increased in number and size in recent years, and emerging research has described facts about ICOs and their supposed safety. We offer a comprehensive discussion of the ICO “revolution” paradigm. We also compare ICOs with other financing sources available to startups. We show that ICOs require regulation and clear governance models and processes to ensure their long-term benefits.