ICOs and early stage investment

In the early days of Bitcoin, the concept of “earning” from cryptocurrency was largely confined to mining. Miners – first individuals and later pools – received bitcoin as a reward for committing blocks of verified transactions to the blockchain. 

Fast-forward to the modern day and there are numerous ways to earn, from staking and trading to selling goods and services in exchange for cryptocurrency. Another way of gaining exposure to digital assets is via ICOs and investment platforms.

ICOs – Initial Coin Offerings – are essentially crowdfunds that raise capital for new crypto-related startups. ICOs are crypto’s stripped-down version of the stock market’s IPOs (Initial Public Offering), wherein the shares of a private corporation are offered to the public in a new stock issuance. 

In 2017, ICO mania gripped the industry as close to $5 billion was raised from investors queuing up to lay their hands on newly-created tokens. These intrepid investors were evidently hoping that their assets would – like Bitcoin – soar in value. Some did, many didn’t; ultimately the ICO bubble burst as crypto entered a protracted bear market.

$5 billion
The amount of money raised in ICOs across 2017/2018

Although early-stage startups tend to raise funds through private token sales and seed rounds these days, ICOs occasionally spring up and give everyday investors the opportunity to “get in on the ground floor.” There are also dedicated investment platforms that offer the prospect of a healthy return, giving users the chance to bootstrap a promising new venture.

While we can’t show you how to earn crypto from ICOs, we can certainly tell you more about them; deciding which crypto projects to invest in is down to you.