More info: https://blockchainhub.net/ Currently there is a lot of hype going on around blockchain ICOs. This Slide deck will help you ask the right questions.

1. How to evaluate an ICO?
BlockchainHub ■ Dr. Shermin Voshmgir ■ April 05, 2017
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4. Hype?
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6. Stupid Money?
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8. Just a flashy landing page?
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11. New Kids on the Blockchain
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13. Type
of
Token?
Depending on how you answer this
question, a very different set of
questions will be relevant.
Blockchain Token: Private or Public
Blockchain? Scalability? Consensus
mechanism? Privacy? Governance?
What problems does it solve that
previous blockchains before have not
solved? Purpose of the token? Rights
attached?
Simple dApp Token: Purpose of the
token? Sustainable revenue models of
different stakeholders? Rights
attached?
DAO Token: Does it manage a lot of
funds? Splitting mechanism?
Governance of Edge Cases? Security?
Rights attached?
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14. Purpose
of
Token?
Token with an inherent value or
just a share?
What will the token be used for?
ETH for gas, BTC for payments…
Is it an incentive mechanism for
the stakeholders? Does it
contribute to a sustainable
economy in the blockchain or
within the dApp/DAO?
If it is pre-mined, how is the token
distribution? How will be the token
distributed after the ICO? How
much goes to the founders.
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15. Stage
of
Project?
● Landing Page only
● White paper
● Proof of Concept
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16. If landing page only…
Forget it!
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17. If Whitepaper...
● Is it well structured?
● Does it explain the technology
in depth?
● Do they have a roadmap?
● Does it survive swarm review &
expert opinion?
● Is it written for marketing
reasons?
● Does it need a blockchain, or is
there an off-chain solution to
solving the same problem?
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18. If POC...
● Does the project have an alpha
version before the fund
raising?
● Were there a lot of commits
on github?
● Testnet available?
● If it doesn’t have an alpha
version, a well written
● Whitepaper and a good team
could compensate for the lack
of progress.
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19. Security &
Auditing
● Any external audits of the
code?
● Has it been running on testnet
for sometime with no major
issues?
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20. Legal &
Compliance
● Does national or international
regulation apply?
● If yes, how could that affect
the business model in the
short & long run?
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21. Founders
& Team
● Track record Previous projects
● Technical know how
● Formal education
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22. Founders
& Team
● Track record Previous projects
● Technical know how
● Formal education
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23. Community
● Do they run a
blog/reddit/slack?
● How interactive are those
social media activities?
● Are they reporting progress?
● Size of a community
depending on stage of project
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24. Market
Potential
● Value proposition: What
problem does it solve?
● How much demand is there
for the project, short & long
term?
● Competitors? Partners?
● Does the project get
discussed in the relevant
communities even before
launch? This could be an
indicator for big interest.
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25. Funding
Structure
● Why does the project need
funding at the moment of the
ICO?
● How were they funded up to
that point?
● Do they have a cap on the
crowd sale?
● Is the amount of tokens
issued limited to the initial
crowdsale?
● Are they putting too much
money into marketing?
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26. Follow us
blockchainhub.net
blockchainhub
@blockchainhub
Shermin Voshmgir
@sherminvo
@sherminvoshmgir
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