Simply speaking, a blockchain can be defined as a transaction ledger that is immutable where a chain of transactions can be followed together with some consensus mechanism to verify authenticity of a particular transaction. The ledger itself may be written onto with new information. However, past information that is stored in blocks may not be changed or edited in any way. This is done through the use of coding to connect the contents of additionally introduce blocks with the blocks before it so that alterations to the contents of a previous block make void the data at all blocks following the currently added block.
Crypto Currencies
There are two major forms of cryptocurrency that ICOs are connected to – they are ethereum and bitcoin. You can obtain these cryptocurrencies through purchasing them in fractional amounts or in whole. Blockchain based coins may be managed and stored from a virtual wallet. ICO offering companies also store these investments in virtual wallets. From these locations these companies can process the coins you have paid into blockchain operation requests or simply cash them out for startup capital in your country’s currency. Investment returns you obtain as an accredited investor can be had in the form defined by the tokens you hold for the investment.
Becoming an Accredited Investor
As opposed to other methods for accessing startup capital funding, if it is structured properly any person may join an ICO due to the fact that no investor verification is required. Only the value of the currencies involved are considered, enabling you to bypass many of the existing regulations connected to traditional investments. Any person with a small number of bitcoins or even a certain percentage of a cryptocurrency see can purchase tokens from an ICO offering without the need to pass through an accredited investor evaluation or obtain registration in some other way other than what the company specifically requires in order to redeem the tokens in the future.
It is important to understand that some ICOs do require accredited investor verification. In the US, in fact, the SEC has suggested that every ICO is a securities offering, and most of those ICOs would likely require accredited investor verification because they’d likely use a securities exemption that requires it Therefore, make sure you understand the nature of the ICO in which you are investing in order to adhere to the necessary requirements involved and have the opportunity to benefit from the available offerings.