ICOs, the initial coin offering sales which have become incredibly popular in the past year as a means of fundraising for new tech startups with links to the digital currency world, have drawn attention from all corners of the globe. On the whole, though, the attention lavished upon the initial coin offerings craze has been wildly positive, with celebrities and other recognizable names even getting involved in greater numbers of late.
Jamie Foxx, an Academy Award-winning actor and musician, recently posted on Twitter to promote the token sale of a company named Cobinhood. As of last week, according to Coin Desk, the ICO for Cobinhood had already generated more than $5 million in funds raised, with the final number likely to be higher.
Cobinhood's fundraising efforts have been substantial, but they still represent just a small portion of the total ICO funds raised. As of late September of 2017, ICOs globally have earned their corresponding companies over $1.8 billion, showing that the new fundraising model seems to have a great degree of momentum.
Fortune has pointed out that celebrities who become entangled in the ICO craze could potentially be putting themselves in jeopardy with the SEC, depending upon the nature and aims of the companies with which they align themselves. In August, the SEC moved to freeze shares of four companies that had potentially used ICOs as a means of enacting pump-and-dump schemes.