Key takeaways:

• In the context of so-called initial coin offerings, or ICOs for short, hundreds of millions of euros are collected by companies in the crypto scene
• Coins or tokens are virtual coins or items whos value is determined by the individual issuer and which are based on blockchain technology
• These coins or tokens can then be traded on various digital exchange platforms
• They are extremely volatile, have little or no legal regulation in many countries and lose all their value in nine out of ten cases
• Established media, banks and academics explicitly warn of ICOs
• On the other hand, there is a hype about this new form of investment on customer and investor side, that makes enormous speculative profits possible
• The IR industry has to expect an increasing complexity of its own professional field in connection with ICOs