Proposed Initial Coin Offering Portal by Hong Kong Trade Group

• Hong Kong's Securities & Futures Professionals Association Proposes ICO Portal
• Web3 Protocols and ICOs
• The Challenge with ICOs
• The Emergence of Legal ICOs
• Looking to the Future of ICOs

Hong Kong's Securities & Futures Professionals Association Proposes ICO Portal

Web3 Protocols and ICOs

A significant number of the most successful Web3 protocols initially emerged as ICOs. Despite the ICO bust - predominantly due to numerous scams - which occurred in the 2017-2018 crypto winter, these proved to be beneficial investments for many who remained in for the long haul.

The Challenge with ICOs

However, the primary issue with ICOs is that, according to existing legal interpretations, most were blatant infringements of securities regulations. Hong Kong was a thriving hub for ICO listings in their prime, but regulatory authorities exerted considerable effort to ensure many of these tokens were delisted from exchanges.

The Emergence of Legal ICOs

In around 2019-2020, the phenomenon of so-called legal ICOs, also known as security token offerings (STOs), started. These, however, did not greatly attract investors in Asia, as reported at the time. Many STO portals saw limited trading volume.

Looking to the Future of ICOs

However, circumstances have evolved, and with a crypto market upswing in sight, it might be an opportune moment to reconsider legal ICOs.

Edited by Jonathan Stoker