What did ICO(Initial coin offerings) do ? It opened up the ability for an investor from anywhere around the world to throw in any amount of money he/she wishes to do so in a company or product.
Think of the far reaching consequences of this. Earlier, in an IPO (Initial product offering), it was restricted to the elite few who have access to brokers, large amount of funds, situated in metropolises. Now, with ICOs, even a farmer in nigeria can participate in an ICO for Tesla for example, and put in 10$ and own some shares in his favourite company. Block chain revolution has enabled that. All he needs is his mobile phone and say 0.01 Ethereum? ICOs has broken all barriers of entry into investments
I began investing in ICO - Initial Coin offerings, somewhere around October 2017. I can confirm now, that I have tripled my investment easily. Had this money been kept in the bank, it would have been near the same. So, lets get to understand what an ICO is
#What is an ICO?
An ICO is a way for a company to get its initial capital for starting operations or building a product. They do this by allowing you to purchase company shares (in this case Cryptocurrency Coins).
#Why is it so lucrative?
Cryptocurrency market and Blockchain technology is still in its infancy. Companies building products on it have a great advantage and a lot of room to grow.
#How do I participate in an ICO?
Most ICOs require you to pre-register with your Ethereum wallet like www.myetherwallet.com and have Ether to participate. They send you the tokens to your myetherwallet on completion of the ICO sale or as is explained in the company whitepaper.
#Where can I find the best ICOs to participate ?
My best source for ICOs is the TheGobOne's ICO sheet. He evalulates ICOs/Companies based on the team behind, concept, number of coins, whether they have a a working product and many other criteria. He lists out the best ICOs for you to invest. Another source is the HeyMattySheet and the IanBalina sheet. All of these are for free. I will link the GobOneSheet here The GobOne ICO evaluation Sheet
#How much money should I invest in an ICO?
As much as you are willing to lose :) This is the case with all cryptocurrency investments. I am not a financial advisor. you can stand to lose the entire amount you invest. and on the upside you can expect to make 2x or 3x or 10x the money you invest.
#What is the approximate timeframe for an ICO?
An ICO is usually for a few months. So don't expect to invest and get returns the next day. The best ICOs give you amazing returns if you hold them 6 months to 1 year.
#Is there a track record of the ICO performance somewhere?
You can have a look at https://www.icostats.com, or better, look at TheGobOne's sheet, you will see 100x returns for some of the ICOs in 2017