Disgruntled ICO Investors Threaten to Bring in the Crypto Lawyers
One of the big selling points with initial coin offerings (ICOs) has been their inclusiveness. Almost anyone can participate. This has made for a more egalitarian process, in contrast with traditional IPOs which welcome accredited investors only. Lowering the barriers to entry has come at a cost however. Among this new wave of investors are many who lack the sense to distinguish a solid project from a dubious one, and who believe that if things go awry, they can call on their lawyer or even the SEC to ride to the rescue.Crypto doesn’t work that way.While ICO teams are still subject to the law, and evidence of clear criminality can and will be prosecuted, the majority of failed projects do not constitute exit scams or blatant deception; more often, a team simply fails to deliver after blowing too much of its budget on “expenses”. In such cases, the chances of successfully filing a suit are remote. The same people who ticked the Ts & Cs without reading and skimmed over the legal disclaimers in their haste to contribute ether to the next sure thing are the same ones now re-examining them in search of clauses that will entitle them to get their money back.