ICO or Casino
Since the beginning of time, April 2017 lmao, I have been trying to learn as much as I can about investing in crypto and staying on the "safe side". Hahahaha, that didn't work out very well every time. I did, however, learn a few things I think might be helpful to anyone just starting out on their journey. I have done very well on a few and not so good on others. This is just my opinion here and feel it may be worthy of sharing to the community.
If you do not know what an ICO is...... RUN! Just kidding. An ICO or Initial Coin Offering is basically a fund raising plan that sells the platforms token/coin before the idea is built usually. As an early investor of the business typically you get to buy the tokens/coins at a much cheaper price than after they hit the market and go live. This is a great position to take if you choose the right companies.
I want to talk about lending platforms first. To me, this is like going to the casino and betting it all on one bet. You could win big or lose everything. Lending platforms have no real use cases for their coin/token. They offer no real service, with the exception a few. And even those few are questionable services. In any case, if your new to this arena and have been told to start investing into a lending platform you may want to reconsider your plan. Price manipulation has been known to happen in the past and if your not paying attention you will lose everything. Seasoned investors get in early and sell out near the top before the big crash.
Mixers and non blockchain companies are another to stay clear of. In my experience so far, almost a year, there is not one that has survived that I have been involved in. I could start naming them all but why, their gone! Poof, instant loss. The first few questions I like to ask myself before investing into an ICO are as follows:
Does the business offer a service or skill that I believe is valuable? Does it solve a real problem or streamline something existing?
Is there coin/token run on a public blockchain?
Are the team members verifiable and known in the community?
Can I find their token/coin on coinmarketcap or on any listed exchanges yet? In ico stage the answer here is almost always no.
Can I afford to lose everything I put in this? Nothing is guaranteed!
These are a few questions I try to answer immediately BEFORE investing any money. Listening to your buddy and throwing money around is not the way to get ahead. Be very cautious!
I have lost my investment a few times already in ICO stage and just wanted to share my experience and little bit of knowledge with the community. I am still learning and have surpass the "everything looks good" stage. I have learned by trial and error with real money. There are some great opportunities out here and many more to come. Know what to look for and do your due diligence first. Good luck and happy investing!