ABSTRACT
This chapter describes how fund raising is performed in the crypto market. The chapter starts by providing a definition of initial coin offerings (ICOs) and by briefly describing the ICO history (from the first ICO of MasterCoin to the $4.2 billion raised by EOS). It then explores the main ICOs features, the main steps of conducting an ICO, and the role of the issued tokens. Particular attention is given to the role of the white paper, as the one key document where all ICO details come together and are synthesized. The chapter ends by comparing ICOs with the two closest alternatives in the traditional markets, namely IPOs and crowdfunding.
