{"id":177,"date":"2017-10-25T11:09:12","date_gmt":"2017-10-25T08:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.icohotlist.com\/?page_id=177"},"modified":"2024-04-23T02:35:58","modified_gmt":"2024-04-22T23:35:58","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.icohotlist.com\/about\/","title":{"rendered":"About"},"content":{"rendered":"

ICO Hot List<\/strong> is an independently curated catalog of the most promising active and upcoming Initial Coin Offerings (ICO’s). Our picks demonstrate real potential across their whitepapers, teams, roadmaps, responsiveness to inquiries and more. The Hottest projects are included on our \u201cHot\u201d shortlist, at our discretion exclusively. The \u201cHot\u201d badge in our listing is for subjects we find interesting, and is not for sale.<\/p>\n

We keep a growing archive of running tokens to follow up on the performance of past ICO projects.<\/p>\n

Important Disclaimer:<\/strong> ICO Hot List does not provide investment, financial, or legal advice. This site cannot substitute for professional advice and independent factual verification. ICO Hot List does not endorse any initial coin offerings advertised on this site but does receive compensation for listing tokens on occasion. Sponsored content is clearly marked in our listings and e-mail newsletter.<\/p>\n

Submitting ICOs<\/h3>\n

If you are an authorized representative of a project please use the\u00a0Submission form<\/a> to help us evaluate the project for inclusion in our catalog.<\/p>\n

Our Review Methodology<\/h3>\n

Tokens offerings and ICO’s are highly speculative in nature. We help our readers assess risk by systematically reviewing the actual teams behind offerings, using structured criteria. Our analysts look into the backgrounds of team members, especially ones with prior business and ICO experience.<\/p>\n

We investigate into all aspects of the project ranging from the technology, viability of the idea, tokenomics & sale structure, hype, participation risks, legal strategy, and vigilance. This also includes the members of the team, advisory board, and notable partnerships. We keep a close eye on deceptive types of behavior and practices that have the potential to harm the community. We are here to help maintain authenticity in the space and to provide an independent & honest source of information.<\/p>\n

Transparency is a key factor in our reviews, including responsiveness to our inquiries about the projects we examine. We do evaluate marketing efforts, as well as social media and community engagement. However, skill, flashiness and buzz in presentation videos, and such, weigh less than the willingness to be forthcoming, about what we previously pointed out as key factors at the beginning of this article.<\/p>\n

In short, ICO Hot List caters to journalists, analysts, and enthusiasts or anyone spectating this ecosystem as a game of fantasy football.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re also interested in your feedback, especially if you feel anything we publish comes off as dubious or misleading. We reserve the right to remove any project from our site if we suspect it to be a scam or deceptive in nature. We also reserve the right to refuse service to anyone at anytime at our discretion.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Refund Policy: No refunds will be given on any purchases. All Sales are Final!<\/strong><\/p>\n

FAQ<\/h2>\n

What does ICO Hot List do?<\/b><\/p>\n

At ICO Hot List, we work hard to bring you a curated catalog of the most promising Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). With this FAQ, we offer to explain how and why we work.<\/p>\n

The gold rush to create the Googles and Amazons of decentralized tech has never been more intense. With this frenzy comes the need for a maintained, fresh list of the coins worth following. ICO Hot List is a premier outlet for such editorialized insight. We hope our site will be of great use to speculators in this exciting new arena.<\/p>\n

We aim to feature only offerings that make sense. As in any field it\u2019s unwise to expel resources randomly. ICO whitepapers, which are technically advanced, carry a risk of \u201cThe Emperor\u2019s new Clothes\u201d -style hype. Many people in visible, even authoritative positions overestimate their level of understanding of this very complex tech.<\/p>\n

What does ICO Hot List NOT do?<\/b><\/p>\n

It\u2019s important that all our readers understand that ICO Hot list does NOT offer investment advice. In certain markets, like the US, investment advice is a regulated service, which must only be provided by licensed advisors.<\/p>\n

Our site simply offers a catalog of opinions, reviews and historical data, which should not be mistaken as encouragement to buy or participate in anything. While we aren\u2019t underselling the skills of our partners and expert contributors, our editorial content is offered for information purposes only. For investment advice, please seek a duly licensed professional.<\/p>\n

We do understand and take seriously the ethical, professional obligations implied by the content we provide. If any of the information on our site appears dubious or false, please let us know. Seriously. email us at team@icohotlist.com<\/p>\n

How does ICO Hot List adapt to the uncertain regulatory environment facing ICOs at the moment?<\/b><\/p>\n

At ICO Hot List, we understand that legislators everywhere are feeling the pressure to make good decisions to protect the public\u2019s interests, without stifling innovation. ICOs are a type of open crowdfunding, and a new field that uproots a lot of established practices and interests. Hence, messages on the benefits and challenges of ICOs may be very conflicting. Please be cautious.<\/p>\n

Our service operates in good faith. While waiting for the regulative chips to fall, we\u2019ve adopted stringent self-regulation, based on signals from US legislators and existing securities regulation. We will let you know when the content we share is paid for.<\/p>\n

We highly welcome any feedback that can help us understand the implications of this sensitive issue under your local legislation. If your own due diligence reveals things we\u2019ve missed, we always appreciate more intelligence on our listings.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) and why should I be skeptical?<\/b><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with the term itself, Initial Coin Offering. \u201cICO\u201c leans, misleadingly, lean on the term IPO, Initial Public Offerings. First off, it\u2019s more appropriate to compare ICOs to crowdfunding campaigns where early birds get special access to a new product or platform.<\/p>\n

To get involved in this type of crowdfunding, it\u2019s critical to understand that ICOs rarely, if ever, offer any kind of equity in the companies providing them.<\/p>\n

The currency, also called tokens, functions within the emerging platform of the ICO startup. We find it useful to compare tokens to gift cards issued by establishments such Amazon.com or iTunes. Except, iTunes and Amazon are massive, profitable businesses. Most ICOs are not \u2013 nothing guarantees that your involvement or purchases will even have a platform to serve.<\/p>\n

Speculators bet that the tokens will skyrocket in value when the application platform grows. This is an unknown .<\/p>\n

Even ICOs brought forward in good faith operate in a largely unregulated market, introducing vulnerability to risks like pump and dump schemes. Compare this to stock markets and other trading of securities, which have been under the lens of regulators for centuries<\/i>, following painful lessons learned under cycles of booms and busts.<\/p>\n

These are some of the reasons why anyone interested in ICOs should act with a healthy dose of skepticism. We also want to remind our readers that tech startups tend to be high-risk targets for speculation as it is.<\/p>\n

Stay informed and proceed with caution!<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the hype all about? Why should I be excited about ICOs?<\/b><\/p>\n

ICOs are possible thanks to smart contracts, a subset of the interesting new things companies can build on blockchain technology. This type of mechanism is a potentially revolutionary step forward towards building decentralized, trustworthy information exchanges and apps.<\/p>\n

We encourage you to read on. If you understand the topics below, chances are you\u2019ll come to share our mix of excitement and caution.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s a token sale?<\/b><\/p>\n

Future networked applications and online commerce may be built on smart contracts, an offshoot of the blockchain concept.<\/p>\n

This type of tech usually has the foundation in some kind of cryptocurrency, sometimes referred to as App Coins, or tokens. If based on the ERC-20 standard under the Ethereum blockchain, tokens are convenient and compatible with many existing wallets and exchanges.<\/p>\n

However, in the case of regulated securities, investors own a small slice of a company. App Coins on the other hand are not <\/b>that. Instead they\u2019re nutrients, sunlight and atmosphere in which individual blockchain platforms operate. As interesting as it is to own a slice of the tokens being exchanged in every transaction on the network, it\u2019s healthy to never forget that tokens may end up as nothing more than \u201cItchy & Scratchy money\u201d<\/a>. Basically, don\u2019t be like Homer Simpson in the linked clip.<\/p>\n

That said, we live in fascinating times. Tokens are part of a machinery, which, in simplified terms, can fund services and commerce in ways that uproots current standard internet business models.<\/p>\n

What is a presale?<\/b><\/p>\n

The new and exciting world of ICOs is now sufficiently established to spin off new concepts and phenomena. Pre-sales are such a novelty.<\/p>\n

Pre-sales offers tokens before the official crowd funding, or crowdsale. This approach is usually more modest in its funding targets, often offering tokens at rates reduced by tens of percent. Different smart contracts are employed, to separate funds from pre- and crowdsales, for accounting purposes.<\/p>\n

The purpose of presales is often to fund the marketing and other preparations of a bigger ICO campaign. Advertising, hiring and arranging events are necessary to gain traction in an increasingly crowded marketplace. These prerequisites for a successful ICO project cost money.<\/p>\n

Of course, for projects, there are risks associated with presales. The image and long-term valuation can become tainted by a perception of pre-sale bargains.<\/p>\n

Explain cryptocurrencies!<\/b><\/p>\n

Digital currencies are not new per se, but cryptocurrencies are still a relatively recent development. Cryptocurrencies implement advanced cryptography. \u00a0The blockchain is one such thing: immutable ledgers which usually create proof of value by imposing computational expense and confirmation of other network events. In other words, the blockchain offers a trustworthy, network-wide transactional history, forming an immutable, permanent record.<\/p>\n

Cryptocurrencies got off to quite the start when anonymous programmer created Bitcoin in 2009, the first and most famous currency of its kind. Building on p2p networking, previously known in forms like bittorrent, cryptocurrencies are Rube Goldberg machines of state-of-the-art cryptography. Participants can put computers to use for \u201cmining\u201d, performing advances calculations, proof of work, to create coin.<\/p>\n

Bitcoin is a deflationary currency, with a limited amount of coin being intended to be mined. As the supply grows, calculations for generating coin increase in difficulty. As the currency can be split in tiny parts as the value grows.<\/p>\n

Naturally, everyone wants to hop on \u201cthe next Bitcoin\u201d.<\/p>\n

What is \u201ccrypto\u201d?<\/b><\/p>\n

Crypto, as a term, has been hijacked by cryptocurrency jargon. However, cryptocurrencies are really built on decades of work in modern cryptography.<\/p>\n

The word cryptography stems from the Greek language, \u03ba\u03c1\u03c5\u03c0\u03c4\u03cc\u03c2 or krypt\u00f3s, meaning “hidden, secret”; and \u03b3\u03c1\u03ac\u03c6\u03b5\u03b9\u03bd, graphein, “to write”, or -\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03af\u03b1 -logia, “study\u201d. Based on the ancient and civilization forming need to pass along secret messages, cryptography is defined as the study of ways to create obscure, unreadable version of information, using methods known as ciphers. \u00a0\u201cCiphertext\u201d can be \u201cunlocked\u201d and turned into \u201ccleartext\u201d by special instructions known as \u201ckeys\u201d.<\/p>\n

Built around extremely complex applied mathematics, modern cryptography in the hands of the layman is a very new thing. Before the exponential growth of secure network communication in the nineties, cryptography was mainly available to nation states and militaries. Governments even tried to keep cryptography out of the hands of citizens.<\/p>\n

However, as basic human transactions moved online to a global network, a need emerged to protect information that previously was stored in ledgers, sealed envelopes placed in locked file cabinets\u2026 or bank vaults. Therefore, any attempt to regulate the use of cryptography itself should be considered an authoritarian attack on civil liberties.<\/p>\n

What is blockchain technology?<\/b><\/p>\n

Mainstream media reporting would easily lead you believe that Bitcoin is all about hopping on the darknet (usually the Tor network) to shop for whatever is deemed unsavory by the State at a given time.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s far from the entire truth. Bitcoin is revolutionary because the blockchain offers a decentralized ledger of transactions. Every fully participating node on the bitcoin network grabs a list of transactions from its peers. Transactions are verified in an immutable record, by being wrapped in cryptographic signatures, making it extremely hard to mess with any piece of Bitcoin history.<\/p>\n