'ICO' Tag
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VC-backed ICO in Europe
April 22, 2018Although I supported a number of ICOs in the past, both as an advisor and as a pre-sale investor, I deliberately chose not to write about them too publicly. Securities laws can be far-reaching, and I certainly did not want to violate any. More importantly, however, I did not want to inadvertently make an open […]
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Beyond Blocks summit
April 7, 2018This past week’s Beyond Blocks summit in Tokyo was beyond wow! Japan is the world’s number one market for cryptocurrency, so the overflow at this Tokyo version did not come as a surprise. Perhaps it’s because the ICO hype window has taken a pause, but the vibe at the summit felt like genuine ambition to […]
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There’s only one market
February 3, 2018There’s only one market. –Oki Matsumoto CEO of Monex Group I was speaking with a startup CEO the other day about a fresh new entrant company in his space that had just raised an ICO. This first CEO’s startup was kicking it old school, i.e. they had launched long before ICOs became a thing, had […]
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A closer look at the Howey Test, and what it might mean for your ICO ambitions
November 30, 2017So you’re thinking of launching an ICO ? Although the regulatory framework governing ICOs varies by country and is still emerging, the U.S. Government has indicated that it will apply the Howey Test in determining whether your token is a security or not. If your intent is to avoid running afoul of the U.S. Federal […]
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Japanese government statement on ICOs
November 4, 2017Almost as if reinforcing the point about constructive regulation, Japan’s Financial Services Authority published a statement yesterday on ICOs. The brief statement (full statement in english here) warns interested investors of the risks of ICOs: price volatility and fraud potential. The FSA helpfully invites inquires via email. “A certain token issued in an ICO falls […]
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Japan: Bitcoin #1 now in paperback
October 28, 2017For those of you who prefer paperbacks over e-books (like me), Japan: Bitcoin #1 is now available on Amazon in paperback form in most major markets. Profits from the sale of this book are directed to rebuilding efforts in Japan’s Tohoku region. I’d like to reiterate my appreciation to the numerous people who helped make […]
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Will Japan ban ICOs ? Constructive regulation more likely.
October 14, 2017A lot of people have been asking my opinion on whether Japan will ban ICOs. China and South Korea have essentially implemented full-on bans of cryptocurrency and ICOs. A Siberian winter for cryptocurrencies also appears imminent in Russia. So will Japan follow suit ? The short answer is: I really don’t know, but I think […]
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Interview from Japan’s Cryptocurrency Conference
September 8, 2017Here’s the English version of the interview I gave at this week’s Japan Cryptocurrency Conference in Tokyo. You mentioned that you believe Japan is taking a leadership role in cryptocurrency. What did you mean by that? I was referring to both the government and the consumer. As another speaker explained, earlier this year the Japanese […]